Valorant, the popular competitive hero shooter from Riot Games, is set to make its debut on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S as early as next week with a limited beta test. This exciting announcement was made during Summer Game Fest 2024, bringing much-anticipated news to console gamers. While the console versions of Valorant will feature cross-progression, they will not include crossplay, a decision Riot Games has made to maintain the game's competitive integrity.
No Crossplay: A Decision for Fair Competition
For players hoping to team up with their friends across platforms, the lack of crossplay might be a letdown. However, Riot Games has made it clear that this decision was made to ensure fairness in the competitive landscape. Playing Valorant with a controller versus a keyboard and mouse presents significant challenges in maintaining a level playing field. Riot Games explained that allowing crossplay between PC and consoles could compromise the competitive integrity that is central to the Valorant experience.
Adapting Valorant for Console Play
Adapting Valorant to console platforms involves more than just translating the controls to a new input method. Riot Games has reworked several gameplay features to ensure the game feels as intuitive and competitive on consoles as it does on PC. A significant addition to the console version is the new Focus feature, which enhances hip-fire precision on controllers.
Valorant Production Director Arnar Gylfason elaborated on this process, stating, “When adapting any features for consoles, our goal was to provide the Valorant moment on a new platform. That meant not simply adapting the input method but ensuring that the experience stays true to the original. We achieved this through multiple iterations, analyzing how problems were solved by other games and, most importantly, getting player feedback — a lot of player feedback. We were also very excited to create the best competitive experience for controllers. This required changes to the game to ensure that it feels right and fair on consoles, so we included new features like Focus where needed, adapted Agent abilities, and many others to deliver that goal."
Cross-Progression and Synchronized Updates
Despite the absence of crossplay, Valorant will support cross-progression, allowing players to maintain a shared inventory across both PC and console platforms. This feature ensures that players can switch between platforms without losing their progress or inventory items. Additionally, all future patches and updates will be released simultaneously across PC and console platforms, ensuring a unified experience for all players.
Beta Test and Wide Release
Gamers eager to try Valorant on the PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X/S can sign up for the limited beta test on the game's official website. The initial beta tests will begin on June 14 in several regions, including the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Europe, and Japan. Riot Games has plans to expand beta testing to more regions and will eventually follow up with a wide release on both consoles.
The arrival of Valorant on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S marks an exciting expansion for the game and its community. While the decision to exclude crossplay may be disappointing to some, Riot Games' focus on maintaining competitive integrity and providing an optimized console experience demonstrates their commitment to quality. Console players now have the opportunity to dive into the intense, strategic gameplay that has made Valorant a standout title in the competitive shooter genre.
