Valorant won’t be good until 1.6

Counter-Strikeis a series I’ve sunk a stupid amount of my life into, and since I stopped playingCS:GOroughly three to four years ago, nothing has taken its place as my immediate go-to time-waster between games. I playedOverwatchat launch and fell off after a few weeks, and that’s pretty much been the same story for every big FPS game this generation. Admittedly, it’s because I’m regularly playing new games or ticking off games from my backlog, making it feel like I can no longer justify the time to become competitive again and genuinely stick with something.

However, the folks over at Riot Games have seemingly mastered what I like to call “maximum money optimization.” Think of it as search engine optimization (SEO) – but instead of trying to nail specific key terms for better Google listings, Riot attempts to improve upon specific game formulas and existing mechanics to make insane amounts of money.Valorantis completely unoriginal (and a bit lacking at the moment), but it has potential that I’m sure Riot will continue to capitalize on.

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Valorantis undoubtedly scratching an itch for me that I haven’t felt in years. How long it will last, though, I’m not sure. For now, take a seat, and enjoy the sights and sounds of Justin and myself flexing ourCS:GOmuscle memory for ten minutes while sharing our impressions ofValorantso far!

The opening area of the Whisper mission, in a small grove.

The Divide in the Cosmodrome, where the Guardian was resurrected.

A holofoil Ribbontail, as seen in collections.

The Phoneutria Fera hand cannon, inspired by the Season of the Haunted armor set. It has a unique, galactic glow.

Three Fuses appear in a match of Apex Legends' Wild Card mode.

Mad Maggie opens a supply bin and an item with a symbol indicating infinite ammo appears.

Legends slide through a zipline in King’s Canyon in Apex Legends.

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The Yeartide Apex tex Mechanica SMG with a Holofoil glow.