January 25, 2023
Launched in the summer of 2020, Valorant took the FPS genre by storm. Its unique twist of able characters transformed the 5v5 format purely based on aim. Through abilities, vibrant characters, and incredible maps, Riot spiced up the FPS genre. However, while the game goes beyond satisfying the needs of modern gamers, it’s still struggling to nail the basics.
Crucial features Valorant is still missing in 2023
In 2023, players have plenty of complaints from Riot, some of which are too reasonable to go unnoticed. So here are the top five features that should have been part of Valorant since the beginning.
Replay system
During Valorant’s first year of release, Riot revealed an in-game replay system on the cards. Fast forward two years, and players are still bugging the developer for a much-needed feature. Valorant’s esports scene is no longer nascent. Instead, it’s a full-fledged behemoth that calls for replay.
“Yes! [Replay] is something that we’re interested in exploring soon. Whether it’s to study previous matches for tactical advantages or to create spicy memes, we know that players will find a wide range of interesting uses for a system like this,” Riot said in 2020.
It’s general practice in FPS esports for players to watch their scrims to understand the enemy’s gameplay and clean up their own strategy. But, currently, there’s no way to download gameplay in Valorant to watch later, which is stressful for aspiring pros. It’s also an issue at the production level at small-scale esports events. So, if you don’t have another way to save replay in Valorant, your spicy gameplay is gone forever.
In-game timeout
Once you have committed to Valorant ranked, you’re entirely in. There’s no way to back out. You can’t leave your desk to take the door, get a sip of water, or even fix FPS or ping issues. The ranked mode of Valorant currently doesn’t have a tactical timeout feature, likely due to an extended buy period which is considered enough time to devise a sound plan for the next round. But it’s still a problem.
Timeouts aren’t always used for tactical reasons. Sudden ping issues are expected in multiplayer games, and due to the lack of a two-time, players often have to deal with AKF penalties. Not just that, it also heavily impacts the overall team performance.
Map selection
In 2023, Valorant has a total of nine maps, but seven of them are active in the pool. Despite such a large map pool, Valorant players still don’t have control over their map picks. So whatever the RNG picks, they must play. Consequently, players often dodge the maps they don’t wish to play, again leading to bans and penalties. A map pick and ban system would allow players to lock horns on the location they like through fair means.
Store rework
Valorant’s skin market is outdated. According to the Valorant community, they sometimes have to wait for months to get the desired skin in their rotation. So Riot devised a four-slot store in Project: A when Valorant had less than a dozen bundles. In 2023, Valorant inventory is flush with over 60 skin lines, cramming in the four slots.
This is highly frustrating to skin collectors who wait months for their favorite skins only to buy something else due to artificial scarcity. In 2023, Valorant should have at least six slots to accommodate the bundles and increase the odds of Premium skins appearing in the daily store.
While the four-slot model sure makes Riot’s skin business more lucrative, players aren’t happy with the approach. The increased wait time has become more frustrating as Riot rolls out new bundles. The community is now requesting more slots and a consumer-friendly market.
Skin trading
Once you buy a Valorant skin, it’s yours forever. Now, how many Vandal skins can you possibly buy? After all, you only juggle between a few. Players often sell their ranked accounts to make up for their money and stacked skins, leading to an MMR disbalance and smurfs in Valorant. All because Valorant players want a bang for the buck.
Allowing players to gift used items or trade them will kill the account trading culture from the root. Not just that, players will also benefit from their purchase in the long term. However, a system like this will make Riot’s daily rotational store redundant. But it’s still an attractive feature.
Riot is firing on all cylinders to make Valorant the go-to FPS game. Fortunately, the game developer actively listens to the community, so players should keep their fingers crossed and hope that one of the features mentioned above makes the cut in 2023.