The new tactical shooter Valorant from Riot Games continues to take shape. A new gameplay trailer presented Agent Phoenix and his fiery abilities in detail. Let's dive into it.
At the beginning of March, Riot Games finally announced Valorant, the in-house tactical shooter which is to take on the PC scene with Counter-Strike and Overwatch from summer 2020.
In this character-based multiplayer shooter, two teams of five players battle for victory. Each player slips into the skin of an agent who possesses four unique skills. A total of eight characters will be available for the planned launch in the summer of 2020. The developers have now introduced the very first one of these – Phoenix. The details came via Twitter where we saw some fresh gameplay scenes from the upcoming title.
Phoenix - the first agent of Valorant in detail
The first character from the Valorant roster which Riot Games presents in detail is Phoenix – a strong warrior from Great Britain who uses fire magic in battle. Visually, the agent looks a bit like supporter Baptiste from the Blizzard hero shooter Overwatch. However, from a gameplay point of view, the two don't have much in common.
PHOENIX /// United Kingdom"You already know the name"#VALORANT pic.twitter.com/ZVfw56TzHl
— VALORANT (@PlayVALORANT) March 5, 2020
Phoenix abilities
Each agent in Valorant has a total of four unique skills. Two of them can be purchased in the current game. Similar to Counter-Strike, you can buy different weapons and skills at the start of each round. In addition, each agent has a Signature ability that can be used during round, and an Ultimate ability that needs to be recharged. In the case of Phoenix, his skills are composed of offensive and supporting talents:
- Ability 1: Hot Hands – Throws a fireball that explodes after a short delay or contact. Inflicts damage and heals Phoenix.
- Ability 2: Blaze – Creates a wall of flame that blocks vision and deals damage to anyone passing through it. You can also bend the wall when casting by turning while holding left-click.
- Signature ability: Curveball – Throws a flare that explodes after a short delay, briefly blinding anyone who looks inside. It can even be thrown around corners with left and right spin.
- Ultimate ability: Run it back – Marks your current position. If you die while the ability is active or runs out, you will awaken again with full life energy at the selected location.
The abilities of the other agents are also known, at least in general, but what they look like in action will probably be revealed by the developers in the coming days and weeks. A good recap of all characters and skills can be found in our overview.
