Mastering Valorant: Tips to Become a Pro in the Popular FPS Game
Curious about Valorant and how to become a pro player?
We’ll explore what sets Valorant apart from other FPS games, the basics you need to know, and strategies to improve your skills.
From understanding the objective to mastering movement and aiming techniques, we’ll cover it all.
Whether you’re a beginner looking to level up or a seasoned player aiming for the top ranks, this guide has something for everyone.
Let’s dive in and elevate your Valorant game!
Contents
- Key Takeaways:
- What is Valorant?
- Why is Valorant Popular?
- What are the Basics of Valorant?
- How to Improve Your Skills in Valorant?
- What are the Best Strategies in Valorant?
- What are the Common Mistakes to Avoid in Valorant?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Valorant and why do I need to be a pro in it?
- What are the essential skills and strategies I need to develop to be a pro in Valorant?
- How can I improve my aim in Valorant?
- What role do communication and teamwork play in being a pro in Valorant?
- How important is it to keep up with the latest updates and changes in Valorant?
- Is it necessary to have a consistent practice routine to be a pro in Valorant?
Key Takeaways:
What is Valorant?
Valorant is an online free-to-play first-person shooter by Riot Games. The game was announced with the codenames Project A, and Aries, on October 15, 2019, and was fully revealed with the title Valorant on March 2, 2020.
The game has a focus on coordination and strategy and was designed to have elements of Counter-Strike as well as Overwatch. While the game incorporates many successful elements from other games, Riot created a unique ecosystem for the game which has made it a very attractive addition to the esports scene.
Why is Valorant Popular?
- Zero Sky: This refers to the clear, unobstructed sky that makes sure that you will never lose control due to weather.
- Fragging: When players are repetitively killing enemies with ease.
- Earning frags: When kills are not achieved by luck but by excellent aim and proper timing.
- Charles Dickens’s Palm Row: Used to describe a situation where both sides have made an attempt to contribute back and forth multiple times, but each time they are thwarted by the other side. They are at a standstill.
- Full Unicorn: A 2v2 situation where both teams have one player left who is dead-set on winning the round.
- Chuck with the Aim of a Dove: An extremely poor or inaccurate aim.
What Makes Valorant Different from Other FPS Games?
Valorant is different from other FPS games because of its unique blend of gameplay elements from other successful games in the genre, as well as its innovative new features that do not currently exist in other similar competitive shooters.
Valorant combines gameplay mechanics seen in games like Counter-Strike and Overwatch, adding unique elements such as a hero-character agent system, a variety of abilities including smokes, molotovs, walls, recon, teleportation, healing, and much more.
Riot Games sought to create a game that was both easily accessible and challenging to master. The result is a game that is much less graphic-dependent and technologically versatile than other games in the genre, that is as welcoming to new players as games like Apex Legends and Fortnite, yet a high-skill ceiling and intense team-based tactical play as Counter-Strike is for long-term expansion and community growth.
What are the Basics of Valorant?
The basics of Valorant are summarized in the list below, with most individual elements being further expanded upon in other sections.
- Features: Valorant was developed by Riot Games, released in 2020, is a free tactical first-person shooter focused on 5v5 competitive play, leans heavily on teamwork and map control, and features agents with unique abilities and weapon purchasing and economy systems. Check out this guide on how to aimbot in Valorant to enhance your gameplay skills.
- Objectives: Lower the enemy’s round count to zero, or prevent the enemy from planting or defusing a spike at either of two spike sites.
- Game elements: Health and armor, buy phase and gunplay, abilities including ultimate abilities, utilities, map features such as spikey ballista, and economy.
- Maps and map usage: Movement, peeking, spike site entry and defense, angle and corner usage for advantage, and map callouts and abilities.
- Communication: Pings, in-game text chat, and voice chat.
- Show respect, be humble.
Understanding the Objective
Understanding the objective is the most important aspect of becoming a pro player in Valorant or any tactical shooter game. The objective in Valorant is to plant the spike on the attacking team or to deal with the spike (defuse or prevent the planting of the bomb) on the defensive team. It is therefore critical to know when you should be going to the bombsites and how best to execute a plant or prevent a plant. Learn the timing and angles and rotation points of the maps so that you can outsmart opponents.
You can hear the bomb from quite far away on most maps; try to notice where the bomb is and adjust your rotation accordingly and get there early. The spike has an attack and cast sound which changes, so if you jump on and off of it you can try and bait a defender into rotating with only a few seconds left to give you a more favorable retake scenario. In case of an emergency, always make sure to have some of your critical abilities stored.
Choosing a Character (Agent)
Similar to League of Legends, the characters in valorant (known as agents) have their unique abilities, roles, and playstyles. It is important to select your agent carefully based on which agents your team members are playing and which agents synergize well with those characters. There are four main agent roles in Valorant. These are the roles similar to what you would see in ATac FPS games such as CS:GO that are adapted for Valorant. The four main agent roles are Initiator, Controller, Duelist, and Sentinel.
- Initiators (Sova, Skye, KAY/O, Astra) are best suited for agents who can initiate attacks for their team and disrupt enemies with their special abilities.
- Controllers (Viper, Brimstone, Breach, Omen) are best suited for agents who can control the pace of the match and battlefield.
- Duelists (Phoenix, Reyna, Jett, Yoru) are best suited for agents who can open and close spaces by themselves with limited team help.
- Sentinels (Killjoy, Cypher, Sage) are best suited for agents who can hold certain positions that are vital for their team to win the game.
Understanding the different agents’ characteristics and choosing an agent based on how it can complement your team, as well as the map you are playing on, can give you an edge during matches. Basically (and TL;DR) deciding who and who not to pick will be different in case-by-case scenarios during matches.
Familiarizing with Weapons and Abilities
Familiarizing with Weapons and abilities is the third part of learning to be a pro in Valorant. After learning map strategies, one must do research to become proficient with the arsenal of weapons and agents within Valorant. Dennis Gonzales from the Score esports puts it, “The best way to learn the weapons themselves is practicing using rifles or SMG’s in practice mode, different agents, and see the different playstyles.”
The weapons in Valorant can be separated into the following categories, which are excellent for the beginners to have an understanding of Shorty, Frenzy, Sheriff, Bucky, Bulldog, Spectre, Guardian, Phantom, Vandal, Ares, Marshal, Operator, Odin.
The abilities for each of the agents in Valorant are different in their usages, cool-downs, and ultimates. With this information players should select the most useful agents available to them and start experimenting with their abilities to see how they best fit their team’s playstyle.
The best way to learn the weapons themselves is through hands-on experience and practice using rifles or sub-machine guns in the practice mode, different to see the different playstyles. The following links provide greater insights into the gunplay and abilities in Valorant. Valorant Agents Weapons and Abilities Guide Agent abilities damage discussion on Reddit Valorant Agent abilities damage stats and max range Paralyze Esports Ultimate guide to Valorant Agent abilities.
Understanding the Map
Maps are one of the most unique and important features of Valorant. Map knowledge is another important skill that can greatly affect your abilities at the game. By knowing Callouts players can convey information better to their team and inform their opponents less about their skill level.
According to Valorant Hub, map knowledge is important for rotating. Being able to understand the map allows players to utilize it to their advantage by knowing how to rotate efficiently and understanding where the opponents may or may not be.
How to Improve Your Skills in Valorant?
You improve your skills in Valorant by using the practice techniques and constantly playing Valorant while keeping track of your mistakes. Drills clicks, smokes, recoil, and movement drills, Analysis breaking down Pro game clips along with your gameplay, Coaching by a professional player through sites such as ProGuides, Playing with a fixed group and Finding a Mentor are all things that will help you improve your skills in Valorant.
Practice, Practice, Practice
One of the most important factors to becoming a pro in Valorant is to practice greatly in many different aspects of the game. Practicing will aid you in reacting just as you should, and it builds the necessary muscle memory for things such as aim. PC Gamer advice on how often to practice for maximum results.
- Health Component: Setting the same time every day to practice can make the game feel more routine (which it needs to be). Proper amounts of sleep can assist in learning and cognitive performance (think problem-solving and strategy).
- Goal Component: Know what you are aiming to improve during each practice session. Whether you’re focusing on a specific skill, agent, or area of the map, make sure the objectives are clear and precise.
- Technique Component: Using a combination of the right and left sides of the brain results in a better chance of remembering something. It’s best to mix things up during your practice sessions. One day, practice map awareness, and moving while shooting, and the next focus on reacting quickly to movements of other players. Similarly alternate between days where you play the game without headphones and using them for better listening skills.
You must address tactics, game sense, and more. This author suggests these are the key things to practice to improve your team skills and abilities.
Watch Professional Players and Tutorials
A key way to become a pro in Valorant is to expand your competency in the game by watching others. Watching professionals play on streaming platforms such as Twitch or in official tournaments spread across various social media platforms (just look up the Valorant Champions Tour) lets you observe better players and pick up tactics they utilize. There are also in-depth tutorials that can assist in overcoming challenging parts of the game such as Sova’s Recon Bolt and Shock Arrow lineups. You can improve your ability to become a pro in Valorant by absorbing techniques and strategies from online content.
Analyze Your Gameplay and Learn from Mistakes
Dedicate more time to watching replays than playing in your quest to become a pro at Valorant. Professionals spend more time analyzing their own gameplay to see what they did right and wrong. Chet Singh, TSM’s head coach, sees they split time, for pro teams they split time 30%%-40%%. They go through their own VOD, they go through other teams VODs, they look at their ratings over time and see what happened. They kind of compare what’d they do well and what they didn’t do well.
A weakness for early-intermediate players in Valorant is the tendency to focus on what other players are doing instead of analyzing their own gameplay extensively.
Communicate and Coordinate with Your Team
Coordination with your team is the foundation of VALORANT. When one of you fails to work with the team, no matter how good your technical skills are, your team inevitably loses. Communication both verbally and via in-game chats improves your performance and enjoyment of the game. Talk about what agents you are using, where you are going, what you see, what abilities and ultimates you may have.
What are the Best Strategies in Valorant?
The best strategies in Valorant include playing a sentry role with Killjoy, Cypher, or Sage where players use early abilities to inform and prepare teams, playing boundaries, using abilities retro-spacing, and setting up and covering for teammates. Alternately, aggressive lurkers like Reyna, Sova, and Viper use strong weapons and abilities to poke map rotations with the coming slugfest flanking opponents or preparing for retake if defenders overwhelm the enemy team.
Playing Offense and Defense
Offense is the act of moving towards the enemy and taking further control of the map, while defense is the act of holding ground and using map control to limit the opponent’s lines of sight. The terms originate from conventional military terminology but have come to mean the movement and setting up up of advantageous situations in team-based games like Valorant and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and even in other games like Overwatch.
Because tips for leveling up fast Valorant is a game with a heavy emphasis on coordination and team play, it is important to understand both the offensive and defensive components of effective play. Depending on the objectives of each round, players have to move quickly between playing aggressively to gain map control and position and playing passively to pick off or duel with enemies. Knowing the prevailing dynamics of the enemy team (usually through teamwork and communication with teammates) helps grant more freedom in decisions making. For instance, players can choose to play more passively to scope out the actions of the enemy team before committing to a pincer movement to the site of contention.
For defensive play, remember Smokes and Zone Control are the two main focus areas. Players can quickly stop offensive pushes and try to control enemy advances with smokes and kill zones. Other important areas for the defense include proper trigger discipline while holding corners and trading off and statting for the defense.
Utilizing Agent Abilities Effectively
Agent abilities in Valorant vary from agents to agents and are crucial in gameplay for various reasons. Abilities include initiation/engagement, reconnaissance, trapping, navigational and visibility aid, defensive, recovery(healing), and firing support. Your utility usage will be improved by getting a feel for firing your primary (and occasionally secondary) weapons even while using abilities. Good aim is as important in Valorant as it is in any other competitive shooter. Even though they only spread horizontally, but not vertically or diagonally, each weapon has recoil patterns. Remember that weapon spread increases with each shot, so tap the fire at long range, rather than spraying. A slight adjustment may be required when you are turning to shoot enemies so that it is set to their height. Your damage output may be significantly increased by landing a headshot on your enemies.
Mastering Movement and Aiming Techniques
You must master movement and aiming techniques to become a pro in Valorant. Basic keys to these techniques are:
- Crouching and tap shooting with weapons like the Bucky, Judge, and Phantom or Vandal
- Peeking, preaiming, and flicking shots depending on the map, type of agent, and the kind of fight you take
A moderated version of pro TenZ’s crouch shots with the Phantom:
- Tap/crouch-shoot at mid to long ranges. Fire only 4-5 bullets per spray if the enemy is head-on, as the Phantom has high first bullet accuracy.
- Fully automatic and keep moving at close ranges.
- Use fully automatic or tap fire at mid ranges against other rifles if the target is not crucial or visible. Use crouch shots against the Bulldog and Guardian.
Concerning movement techniques, Ghost.gamin’s valorant agent movement tutorial offers these points regarding proper off angles and movement and how to crouch, walk, or run to quickly peek and surprise expteected opponents. Note that they can be enemy or friendly agents as the context dictates:
- Agents like Omen, Raze, Phoenix, and Sova have different movement speeds and will make sounds when they walk. You can listen for the sounds to recognize the agent type.
- At the agent selection screen, set up your sensitivity so that when you move your mouse from the left side of your pad to the right side, your agent does a full 360 degree turn, with compromise as necessary. This will help you with flicking shots.
It is best to watch breakdowns of Valorant pro plays videos on YouTube.
Working with Your Team’s Composition
Working with your team’s composition means determining a proven agent composition for a given map and coordinating that with your team. A controller, one or two initiators, one or two sentinels, and one to three duelists is the standard team composition. Each agent must match these roles during the game for your team to be well-rounded, able to address different strategic or tactical situations, and to cover each other’s strengths and weaknesses.
For example, a Jett, Sova, Viper, Skye, Cypher agent selection is great for the Bind or Haven maps. Jett and Sova can play sentinels at mid but are free to roam, Viper, Skye, and Cypher can control territory or define with spike zones, and Jett and Cypher on the duel with Sova and Skye tackling utility.
What are the Common Mistakes to Avoid in Valorant?
The following is a list of common mistakes to avoid in Valorant:
- Elongated reloads: Don’t allow your magazine size to go below half before considering reloading, always reload between engagements. To address this, get comfortable with the pistol and its unlimited ammo by transitioning to it immediately after you start reloading.
- Bad crosshair placement: Always keep your crosshair ahead of you to avoid the enemy catching you off guard.
- No matching utility use: Properly match your agent’s utility usage with that of your teammates in terms of role and team dynamic during attack and defense
- Exposing yourself to dangerous angles: Always hug the wall when passing by doors and corners to prevent being caught unaware.
- Not relying on teammates but not helping them: Choose to apply pressure to an enemy position when your teammate(s) does/will or request their assistance before doing so.
- Getting stuck on a weapon type: Change position on the map if an enemy is aware of your position.
Video creator and game strategist Shinobi discusses these common mistakes and more in his video The MOST COMMON Mistakes All Levels Make in Valorant.
Not Communicating with Your Team
Don’t be an idiot and ignore the chat. Team games where communication and coordination are key to winning are important in Valorant and most players use the chat to coordinate their entire game plan for an entire round. Don’t be an idiot and neglect the team. And if you are an idiot, just make a habit of pinging incessantly. It might be an annoyance to them, but it will help the team in no small manner in the long run.
Not Understanding the Map and Objectives
Understanding the map and objectives well is important. New players in Valorant often encounter the problem of getting lost in the complexity of large maps that contain multiple avenues, sites, and picks which results in them easily being killed. They can lessen chances of this happening by playing fewer maps and familiarizing themselves with the layout and objectives of each map.
This familiarity will show in the form of players conveying site information in a game. The area that they are seeing, or the area that is there is clear area to place them, meaning the latter is good for planting the spike after the enemy has been dealt with. Pro players are experts with the map layouts. They know where each corner is, know the angle locations, and know how to smoke which is essential in making their job as entry fraggers easier and also making opportunities of letting the site players do the best.
Not Adapting to Different Situations
This is another classic mistake I see in so many agents both new and old – myself included in my earliest days in Valorant. Agents must adapt their strategies, playstyles, and even weapons of choice to both their team composition and the specific situation. It does not matter how much of an expert on the bread and butter of your agent if you are not able to change if it’s not working, adapting your play to your teammates, and opponents.
Not Utilizing Agent Abilities Properly
Each agent has four abilities, two basic and one ultimate, that can be purchased for cash. New players often try to get too fancy with their abilities and end up misusing them, which are valuable in the proper context. To play like a pro in Valorant, map your Defensive Site locations and study the correct use of abilities. Where they are placed matters. Cypher seems not particularly helpful, but if tossed back by C Long and the doors are still open, enemies are spotted, which directs the faces needed to be looking at the bomb site. Abilities can also be used offensively. For example, using Breach’s abilities as an entry fragger helps teammates push into bomb sites and can often catch opponents off guard.
Giving the team an early advantage can often determine the winner in a round and cumulatively decide the final winner of the game. In round four of the 2021 UPL Winter Series, New England Whalers Mitch proved the decisive ability usage by throwing his tripwire through Garage by garage to alert NiP and immediately flank from C, tying the score 2-2 early and gaining an early advantage with his Cypher’s usage.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Valorant and why do I need to be a pro in it?
Valorant is a popular tactical first-person shooter game that requires a combination of strategy, skill, and teamwork. Being a pro in Valorant means mastering the game and being able to compete at a high level, which can lead to opportunities such as joining professional teams or participating in tournaments with prize money.
What are the essential skills and strategies I need to develop to be a pro in Valorant?
To be a pro in Valorant, you need to have a strong understanding of the game mechanics, such as how different weapons work, map layouts, and agent abilities. You also need to have excellent aim, reflexes, and game sense to outplay your opponents and make strategic decisions.
How can I improve my aim in Valorant?
One of the best ways to improve your aim in Valorant is by practicing in the game’s practice range. You can also try adjusting your mouse sensitivity and using different crosshair settings to find what works best for you. Additionally, watching pro players and studying their aim techniques can also help you improve.
What role do communication and teamwork play in being a pro in Valorant?
Communicating with your team and working together is crucial in Valorant. As a pro player, you need to be able to communicate clearly and effectively with your teammates, call out enemy locations and share information to make coordinated plays and strategies.
How important is it to keep up with the latest updates and changes in Valorant?
As with any competitive game, it is essential to stay updated on the latest changes and updates in Valorant. These updates can bring in new agents, weapons, and changes to the game’s meta, which can affect your gameplay and strategies. Keeping up with the updates can give you an edge over your opponents.
Is it necessary to have a consistent practice routine to be a pro in Valorant?
Yes, having a consistent practice routine is crucial to becoming a pro in Valorant. Whether it’s practicing your aim, studying gameplay, or playing scrims with your team, regular practice will help you improve your skills and stay sharp. It’s also essential to take breaks to avoid burnout and maintain a healthy balance.
