VALORANT: The Upcoming Free-to-Play Competitive Shooter
VALORANT, previously known as Project A, is Riot Games’ latest title. This five-vs-five, character-based first-person shooter for PC combines the elements of Overwatch and Counter-Strike, offering a round-based, attack-vs-defender, best-of-24-rounds gunfight between two teams.
VALORANT is designed to reward creativity with its precise skill gameplay, high stakes, and clutch moments. It features a diverse arsenal of guns, unique characters with special abilities, and maps specifically tailored for competitive play.
Free-to-play: Similar to Other Riot Games
Like Riot Games’ other popular titles—League of Legends, Legends of Runeterra, and Teamfight Tactics—VALORANT will be free-to-play. While the full details are yet to be revealed, it’s safe to assume that the game will have microtransactions for cosmetic character and weapon skins, which do not impact gameplay.
Unprecedented 128-tick Servers
In a first for first-person shooters, VALORANT will have dedicated 128-tick servers. This sets it apart from popular games like Counter-Strike, Overwatch, Call of Duty, and Rainbow 6. These high tickrate servers ensure consistent and competitive gameplay, offering better accuracy, peaker’s advantage, and bullet registration.
PC Platform and Optimized System Requirements
Currently, VALORANT is designed exclusively for PC players. While Riot Games may consider console or mobile ports in the future, there is no immediate plan for expansion. The game is optimized to perform on a wide range of PC hardware, making it accessible to a global audience.
Recommended Specs – 60 frames per second:
- CPU: Intel i3-4150
- GPU: Geforce GT 730
High-end Specs – 144+ frames per second:
- CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz
- GPU: GTX 1050 Ti
Minimum Spec – 30 frames per second:
- CPU: Intel i3-370M
- GPU: Intel HD 3000
PC hardware recommendations:
- Windows 7/8/10 64-bit
- 4GB RAM
- 1GB of VRAM
Release Date
While the exact release date for VALORANT hasn’t been announced, it is expected to launch in the summer of this year—earlier than initially anticipated. Beta testing will soon be available, potentially within the next few months. Selected pro players from games like Counter-Strike, Overwatch, and Fortnite will have the opportunity to test the game at Riot’s headquarters and stream their experience on Twitch.
Update: Valorant was released on 2 June 2020