Valorant is finally getting the thing we've been asking for since day one

I can happily admit that sometimes, I'm really good at Valorant, and other times, I am absolute horseshit. I've gotten aces on pistol round and used Neon's lighting to decimate enemy teams, before happily wandering into an obvious ambush or panicking so much that I spray the wall with bullets instead of my enemies. There was a period, however, when I really wanted to get better at Valorant, but in order to watch my matches back I'd need to use OBS because it doesn't offer any way to review previous games. Well, after five years of waiting, we can finally kick OBS to the kerb: Riot has revealed when the Valorant replay system is going to drop.

Ahead of Valorant's fifth anniversary celebrations, Riot has confirmed that the replay system is coming with patch 11.6. While it'll only be available for competitive games initially, the team is looking to expand it out to the FPS game's other modes so that you can get a good look at how that bullet 'somehow curved around a wall' and one-shotted you.

Additionally, patch 11.02 (slated to drop at the end of July) will see Valorant transition across to Unreal Engine 5, and if you log in on the day you'll receive an exclusive gun buddy reward. Riot warns that, in order to migrate everything across, there'll be a significant download on your end, but highlights that the game itself shouldn't be too different to what we're playing now.

Looking at the actual gameplay itself, the focus is still very much on improving balancing and the shooter's overall health. As part of this, from patch 11.0 new maps will be included in competitive play on day one, but for the first two weeks your RR loss will be decreased by 50%. You'll still get the full amount if you win, though, so personally I think this system works really well. Team tags are also being introduced in Rated, so you'll be able to squad up as a five and show off your snazzy new team name.

Riot is also looking at clamping down even harder on smurfs, adding multi-factor authentication to stop players from sharing accounts so that it can track who exactly is playing. Additionally, it's implementing a new system that shows your account's current standing, accompanied by a breakdown of any penalties and the potential punishments that could be put in place if you continue to accrue warnings.

So, as a recap: Valorant patch 11.0 will add new maps to the competitive pool from day one, with patch 11.02 marking the shift from UE4 to UE5 at the end of July. Valorant recaps are coming with patch 11.06, currently set to drop in September.

If all of this has lured you back to Riot's tactical hero shooter, check out our Valorant tier list to ensure you're locking in the best agents. Or, if you're all about style, we have a list of all the Valorant skins, their bundles, and their prices.

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