Valorant lead says CS:GO and Overwatch comparisons are not "fair to other games" or "what Valorant has become"
Aug. 2, 2024“I think we feel like that’s a surface-level comparison to make”
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Riot Games is well aware of the comparisons that people sometimes draw between Valorant and rival shooters CS:GO and Overwatch, but the team believes “that’s a surface-level comparison to make.”
Gylfason says: “I think it’s an easy correlation to draw, because, hey, it has heroes, and it’s a tactical shooter.” However, it’s not a comparison he likes using, for multiple reasons.
“I think we feel like that’s a surface-level comparison to make,” he continues. “We feel like we are definitely our own flavor. We are our own identity. And we don’t like comparing to other games… I don’t think it’s fair to other games, I don’t think it’s fair to what Valorant has become.
“I think it’s more a question of, again, what motivations are we serving, what player motivations are we serving, and what kind of gameplay fantasy are we providing those players? Which is slightly more nuanced, but that’s not the first time I’ve heard that comparison, no.”
In the same interview, Gylfason tells us that Riot doesn’t “think of [Valorant] as a hero shooter,” which plays into the developer’s confidence in launching the FPS on consoles now, even though the genre has been getting increasingly more crowded lately. Gylfason believes Valorant"scratches a different itch than the kind of hero action shooters that we’ve been seeingin this space for the past few years,” with different games serving “different needs” and “player motivations,” leading him to believe that “there’s room for all.”
Surprise! Valorant is out now on Xbox Series X/S and PS5 after just 1 week in open beta: “We are so excited to be welcoming this brand new audience.”
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I’m one of GamesRadar+’s news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield’s student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming’s news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you’re sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.
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