Valorant is a 5v5 competitive first-person shooter (FPS) game by Riot games (Creators of League of Legends) where there is an attacking team and defending team. The main premise of the game is to either plant the bomb (called a spike) and have it detonated if you are on the attacking team or try to defuse and stop the attack if you are on the defending side (Similarly to CS: GO). Regardless of whether the spike is planted or not, if a squad is wiped out before any other victory condition is met, the opposing squad will win. What sets this game apart from the other tactical shooters is the ability to select different ‘agents’. These different ‘agents’ have abilities that can change the outcome of the match.  

Of the 18 agents currently in the game, Chamber is my favourite. He has a fast-firing sniper that can one-shot anyone, a teleporting ability to escape from danger and a trip to alert the team for flanking enemies. Other heroes include Sage, a self-sufficient medic who can summon walls to halt an enemy assault, or Reyna, who becomes more dangerous the more kills she racks up. The deadliest agents are high risk and high reward, and exemplify the appealing state of competitive flux that Valorant matches offer. 

Players are able to purchase cosmetics in the store that are available to be purchased using a currency called VALORANT Points (VP).  

Cosmetic items such as weapon skins and melee skins rotate daily in the store. Bundles, which include a range of cosmetics from gun buddies to player cards, also appear in the store on a bi-weekly basis. There’s the Night Market to bear in mind as well, offering skins at a cut price. VALORANT Points can be purchased using real-world money. The most basic skins (select edition) cost 875 VP, while the more premium skins (ultra and exclusive editions) cost 2,475 VP and more. Other than cosmetics, players can use VP to purchase contract levels, battle pass levels, Radianite points, and agents. 

Some players have developed a valorant accent after playing the game for an extended amount of time, or phrases like: 

“Ur not even trolling” 

“Actually braindead”  

“No kyap” 

“💀 emoji x 7” 

These have become quite common.  

The distinct accent can be traced back to one player in particular – Jay “Sinatraa” Won.  

This player has a very distinct way with words, while queued up for Valorant and streaming – he can often be heard talking rather sluggish, seemingly disinterested and throwing out random insults whenever a teammate made a play he considered “braindead”, using a certain voice tone while speaking, alongside repeating terms. 

What I love about Valorant is that it brings mind games and strategy to the hero shooter, shifting the experience away from the more frenetic, less cerebral button-mashing of other team shooters such as Overwatch. Each round feels like a psychological thrill ride: when you’re the last surviving agent on your team, concealing the sound of your steps to creep up on a well-defended bombsite and steal the match.