Riot Games has released Valorant Patch 3.0 today, bringing with it one of the most important improvements in the history of the game. Almost every agent will have their skills’ costs reduced, and numerous weapons will become cheaper as a result of this. The running accuracy of weapons has also been improved, which should prevent players from gaining unjustified kills by running and shooting while in combat.
In addition, KAY/O, a lethal robot capable of suppressing opponent abilities and forcing players to depend only on their gun skills, is included in Patch 3.0. In addition, a few modifications to the competitive playlist, many bug fixes, and performance improvements may be expected.
According to Max Grossman and Sal Garozzo, Co-Lead Designers at Valorant Team, Riot Games said,
“While there are several improvements in the 3.0 patch, the majority of them are focused on enhancing two important components of the game: increasing the significance of accurate gunplay and broadening the tactical sandbox, respectively.”
“Our vision for VALORANT is to create a dynamic sandbox where players may utilize their skills and imagination to conquer every challenge they face. Every map, weapon, and character in the game will be part of this evolving world. The greatest time to utilize VALORANT, we feel, is when you are confronted with a wide range of unique difficulties and are forced to make difficult decisions about the tools and methods you will employ to conquer them. To do this, we have taken a comprehensive look at the game’s economics, adjusting weapon and ability costs to better reflect their impact on a match and to allow players to develop more dynamic varied loadouts and tactics.”
“Changes that affect the entire game, such as these, maybe quite unpleasant because we are asking you all to relearn a lot of stuff that you are already familiar with. There may be moments when you are forced to make more difficult decisions about what you bring into combat each round or when you are forced to engage with an opponent in a new manner—but remember that your opponents are also facing similar difficulties.”
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Here are the Valorant Patch Notes 3.0 details:
The ability prices, cooldown rates, and ultimate charges have all been modified on every Agent to achieve our aim of providing a more dynamic sandbox for players. As a general rule, developers found that certain agents were able to have an excessive amount of influence with their skills without having to make any substantial sacrifices. In this case, their objective is to maintain a more consistent flow of abilities across a game, while also forcing you to think more critically about your purchasing selections.
All Agents
- The number of charges provided by signature abilities is now limited to a minimum of one charge every round, rather than increasing by one charge per round.
Example: If you have a signature ability that requires two charges and you complete the round with one charge remaining, you will not be able to earn another charge. - Charges earned through cooldowns are no longer permanent; they are now just temporary.
- During the fadeout phase of all flashes, visibility recovers at a quicker rate.
ASTRA
Even at the highest levels of competition, Astra is extremely well-liked, and developers found that certain of her play patterns were tough to respond to every round. The ability to deliver map-wide pressure is something they want Astra to be capable of, but she can do it much too frequently and with little or no counterplay or cost. These adjustments are intended to enable greater counterplay on barrier drop, as well as significantly longer and more distinct cooldown periods when Astra uses or recalls her Stars.
Nova Pulse (Q)
- Cooldown time increased 12 >>> 25
Gravity Well (C)
- Cooldown time increased 12 >>> 25
Stars/Astral Form (X)
- Stars are now inactive when placed during the buy phase
When the barriers drop, her Stars charge for 1.4 seconds before becoming active and usable. - On Attack, Astra can now see the Spike’s location in Astral form
This representation does not animate so it will not provide additional info on the status of the Spike. - Recall cooldown increased 8 >>> 15
- Granted signature charges decreased 2 >>> 1
- Star cost decreased 200 >>>150
BREACH
The third flash charge has been removed from Breach’s kit, with the impact being distributed over his whole kit. Breach and his allies should benefit from the improvements to his other abilities, which should result in greater reliability. As a result, several of Breach’s abilities will have shorter cast commitments, and the speed of his Flashpoint projectile will be reduced to give him more time to re-equip his weapon and clean up his tools.
Flashpoint (Q)
- Total charges reduced 3 >>> 2
- Cost increased 200 >>> 250
- Projectile speed decreased 2500 >>>2000
Fault Line (E)
- Full charge time decreased 1.5 >>> 1 second
- Width increased 600 >>> 750
- Telegraph windup time decreased 1.3 >>> 1
- Concussion duration increased 3 >>> 3.5
- Unequip time after firing decreased 1 >>> .7
- Cooldown time increased 35 >>> 40
After Shock (C)
- Now explodes 3 times with each blast dealing 60 damage with no fall off, blasts are .6 seconds apart
- Explosion radius increased 260 >>> 300
- Unuequip time after firing decreased 1.1 >>> .9 seconds
- Cost increased 100 >>> 200
Rolling Thunder (X)
- The width of all explosions increased to 2300, which was the previous width of the final explosion
BRIMSTONE
Incendiary (Q)
- Brimstone’s Incendiary now costs 250 credits, which earlier had 200 credits.
CYPHER
Neural Theft (X)
- Ultimate points required decreased 7 >>> 6
JETT
The interaction between Jett and Cypher’s Trapwire has been reversed. When they first implemented this adjustment, there was a lot of concern about Jett being weak and Cypher becoming oppressive to play against, which they took into consideration. As players have become more adept at avoiding Cypher’s traps and Jett has established herself as a valuable asset in the game, they believe that Jett should be required to play and plan around Cypher’s planned setup rather than being able to just blast through it without thinking.
Updraft (Q)
- Cost increased 100 >>> 150
Tailwind (E)
- No longer breaks Cypher’s Trapwire
Cloudburst (C)
- Cost increased 100 >>> 200
Bladestorm (X)
- Ultimate points required increased 6 >>> 7
KILLJOY
Alarmbot (Q)
- Cooldown after pickup increased 7 >>> 20
Turret (E)
- Cooldown after pickup increased 10 >>> 20
OMEN
Paranoia (Q)
- Cost decreased 400 >>> 300
Dark Cover (E)
- Granted signature charges reduced 2 >>> 1
- Omen now must buy his second smoke for 100
- Cooldown time increased 35 >>> 40
Shrouded Step (C)
- Cost increased 100 >>> 150
PHOENIX
Curveball (Q)
- Cost increased 200 >>> 250
RAZE
Model Update
- The model has been updated with a polished pass
Boombot (C)
- Cost increased 200 >>> 400
Showstopper (X)
- Ultimate points required increased 7 >>> 8
REYNA
Leer (C)
- Cost increased 200 >>> 250
SAGE
Slow Orb (Q)
- Cost increased 100 >>> 200
Barrier Orb (C)
- Cost increased 300 >>> 400
Resurrection (X)
- Ultimate points required increased 7 >>> 8
SKYE
Even though Skye will lose her third flash charge, she will earn charges while on a cooldown for her signature move. Developers changed things so that Skye no longer has to put her rifle down to engage Guiding Light, and made some enhancements to the overall experience while guiding the projectile or letting it fly free. Although Trailblazer’s vision radius is adequate for clearing medium-sized rooms (where it should shine), we have found that the concuss might benefit from a little more bite, given how tough it is to land. In the hopes of increasing Skye’s viability in solo queue and helping her carve out a competitive niche in organized play, they have made the following changes:
Trailblazer (Q)
- Vision radius increased 1750 >>> 2250
- Max concussion duration increased 3 >>> 4
- Cost increased 200 >>> 250
Guiding Light (E)
- Charges reduced 3 >>> 2
- Charges are now replenished on a 40-second cooldown
- Skye no longer needs to re-equip to trigger her flash
- Guiding Light’s projectile now goes around corners tighter when free-flying and is more responsive to guiding.
- Audio attenuation when cast reduced 3250 >>> 1250
- Cost of charges increased 100 >>> 250
SOVA
Shock Dart (Q)
- Cost increased 100 >>> 150
Recon Bolt (E)
- Cooldown time increased 35 >>> 40
Owl Drone (C)
- Cost increased 300 >>> 400
Hunter’s Fury (X)
- Ultimate points required increased 7 >>> 8
VIPER
Snakebite (C)
- Duration reduced 8 >>> 6.5
- Outer edges of Viper’s acid patch form faster to ensure it is lethal if an enemy sits in the entire duration
- Cost increased 100 >>> 200
We’ve seen a massive resurgence in Viper’s popularity and power, especially at stalling opponents and preventing defuses. We hope to slightly reduce some of this stalling power.
YORU
Blindside (Q)
- Cost increased 200 >>> 250
Gatecrash (E)
- Cooldown time increased 35 >>> 40
WEAPON UPDATES
According to Official Patch Notes, the developers say…
Since the game’s release, the term “run-and-gun” has become popular. While we agree that there are instances in which moving and firing should be effective, we believe that it is now more effective than we would want. An element of the issue that we haven’t tackled yet is what we term “tag into accuracy,” and this patch addresses that aspect of the challenge.
A situation is known as “tag into accuracy” occurs when a fully sprinting player begins firing at you without slowing down; when this occurs, you shoot and hit them, inflicting the tagging debuff and slowing them down. Even if they are not attempting to come to a halt, this accidentally slows them down enough to make their shots more precise. A large number of run and gun clips we observe are caused by this behavior, and the modifications in this patch should reduce the efficacy of this behavior, particularly at longer ranges. Overall, our goal is to better recognize and reward proactive and accurate movement.
The goal is to tighten up fighting while retaining as much intuition and muscle memory as possible. This will be accomplished by reducing tagging, tightening dead zones, and overall decreasing accuracy in movement states.
The accuracy of Walk Shooting (as opposed to Run Shooting) has been very consistent in VALORANT, allowing players to get off semi-accurate shots even at mid-range. Shooting while walking will become substantially less successful at medium ranges as a result of the improvements to walk accuracy, rewarding players who proactively halt before they shoot.
Aside from that, we’ve decreased the running accuracy of sidearm weapons and SMGs to tighten up engagements with those weapons while retaining some of their characters in terms of mobility by allowing them to move and shoot relatively accurately at shorter ranges.”
ALL WEAPONS
- Bullet tagging changed from 75% slow >>> 72.5% slow
“Tagging” is the slowing effect you feel when hit by bullets - Weapon Deadzones changed from 30% >>> 27.5%
“Deadzone” in VALORANT refers to the movement speed at a player becomes inaccurate
ALL RIFLES
- Walking inaccuracy changed from 1.3 >>> 2.0
- Running unchanged at 5.0
ALL HEAVIES
- Walking Inaccuracy changed from .5 >>> 2.4
- Running unchanged at 6.0
ALL SMGS
- Walking inaccuracy changed from .3 >>> 1.0
- Running inaccuracy changed from 2.0 >>> 2.5
CLASSIC
- Walking inaccuracy changed from .25 >>> .84
- Running inaccuracy changed from 1.5 >>> 2.1
FRENZY
- Price decreased 500 >>> 450
- Walking inaccuracy changed from .25 >>> .8
- Running inaccuracy changed from 1.0 >>> 2.0
GHOST
- Walking inaccuracy changed from .25 >>> .92
- Running Inaccuracy changed from 1.85 >>> 2.3
SHERIFF
- Walking inaccuracy changed from .25 >>> 1.2
- Running inaccuracy changed from 2.0 >>> 3.0
JUDGE
- Price increased 1600 >>> 1850
- The damage falloff at 10m changed from 13 per pellet >>> 10 per pellet
- The damage falloff at 15m changed from 10 per pellet >>> 7 per pellet
We want the Judge to be a devastating, multi-fragging, close-range option and believe it’s a bit more premium than we had previously given it credit for. It was also performing better than expected at range so we’re taking that down a notch.
BULLDOG
- Hip-fire (full auto mode) firing rate increased from 9.15 RPS >>> 9.5 RPS
- Price decreased 2100 >>> 2050
The bulldog was feeling just slightly underpowered in close/mid-range situations where the hip fire was the go-to. So we’re giving it a bit more of a firing rate to compete, and lowering the price to make it more enticing to buy.
SHORTY
- Price decreased 200 >>> 150
STINGER
- Price decreased 1100 >>> 950
BUCKY
- Price decreased 900 >>> 850
MARSHAL
- Price decreased 1000 >>> 950
ARES
- Price decreased 1600 >>> 1550
OPERATOR
- Price decreased from 5000 >>> 4700
COMPETITIVE UPDATES
The precision and fairness of matching will be our primary emphasis for Ranked in Episode 3. Since then, we’ve reviewed the whole system and implemented a few important adjustments that should benefit a wide range of players in these critical areas. We don’t want to give too much away about what you may expect in Episode 3 since we don’t want to give anything away about the secret sauce.
Here are our primary player experience goals:
- We want winning games to matter most—at all skill levels.
- We want to improve individual performance evaluation because we believe it helps identify more fair and balanced matches.
- We want you to see their rank as an accurate representation of your current skill level.
- We want you to have fewer motivations for playing on different accounts and to get to their proper rank faster.
Here’s some of what you can expect from our changes:
- Reduced the possibility of feeling “hard stuck” on older accounts. If your skill improves, your rank should properly reflect that, regardless of account age.
- Matchmaking accuracy will improve across all ranks, which should lead to a smoother ranked climb and reduce how hard you may swing up and down in rank
- While winning games is still the most important factor, individual performance will also be accounted for to improve matchmaking at Immortal+
This should result in better matches at the highest levels. - Close games will have a smaller effect on rank rating gains and losses
- Adjusted our Rank Rating curves, so climbing (or falling) should feel less volatile
- Updated Rank distribution
- Placements raised to Diamond 1
This should help reduce the grind for our players at the top
We plan to continue to monitor these changes after they’ve reached our live servers, and we’ll certainly make more adjustments where appropriate. We’re looking forward to getting these changes into your hands, and please continue to provide us with feedback on your experiences throughout Episode 3!
PERFORMANCE UPDATES
We’re thrilled to be able to provide significant enhancements with 3.0! A great amount of effort and collaboration has gone into this project over the course of several months, with several teams from across VALORANT contributing. Performance is a battle won on the margins, and we are typically able to make modest incremental improvements. This time, though, a number of our little pieces came together at the same moment as a whole.
As a consequence of the following work, players with medium to high-spec computers (i.e., CPU-bound systems) may experience up to a 6% boost in performance:
- Improved clipping plane calculations using multithreading.
- Improved thread utilization across multiple cores for distributed tasks.
- Optimized camera calculations.
- Optimized ambient audio for each map.
- General optimizations for all ability animations.
SOCIAL UPDATES
- Hover Cards have been added to the social panel
Hover over your friend’s list to quickly learn more about the players you have added. - You can now invite to party with Riot ID in custom game
OTHERS
Kill Feed overlay has also been updated to include additional information about each kill, players who aided with the kill, and whether or not they were in a second-life condition, such as Phoenix’s ultimate state, among other things.
In VALORANT, there are a few new options for players to advance their characters. The new Year One Event Pass, which works similarly to a battle pass in that it allows players to win free items, will be available during Patch 3.0. The squad boost, which is also available through Patch 3.0, will reward players who are queuing with their buddies based on the number of people in their group.
In the new account leveling function, the number of hours you spend playing is converted into a numerical level based on the amount of time you spend playing. Following the number of games you’ve played before Patch 3.0, your level will be automatically raised to a specific point.
The official patch notes provide a comprehensive summary of all of the upgrades and changes, as well as a list of the hundreds of problems and glitches that have been fixed.
