While Valorant might be exclusive to PC for now, developer Riot Games has revealed that it's exploring the possibility of bringing its popular 5v5 tactical shooter to consoles.
Speaking to Gamespot, executive producer Anna Donlon admitted that, although porting the game to consoles is something the team is "prototyping", they want to ensure that Valorant’s experience and competitive gameplay isn’t lost in translation.
“There’s a way to play this game and there’s a way to experience this game that we’re not entirely sure translates completely to console play.” said Donlon.
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Much like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which famously came to Xbox 360 and was all but abandoned by Valve once it was released, Valorant’s gunplay requires pinpoint accuracy and razor-sharp reflexes. A headshot usually results in an instant-kill, so it’s particularly punishing to those who are slow to line up a shot.
"If we feel like we can deliver this experience on those platforms, we absolutely will," Donlon added. "But we really want Valorant to stand for a certain type of gameplay and a certain type of experience."
Console conundrum
Crucially, then, Donlon wants to ensure that Valorant isn’t watered-down or changed in any way just to fit consoles. She also stressed that "it's not a no, for sure”, but that we won’t be seeing Valorant on PS4 or Xbox One in the immediate future: “It definitely wasn't the focus out of the gate. If we were to do it, it'll definitely be delayed."
After a nearly two-month long invite-only beta, Valorant is out now on PC and is free-to-play. It’s proving extremely popular on Twitch, and is already primed to become a popular esport thanks to its competitive nature and subtle tweaks to CS:GO’s successful formula.
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