Riot Games' popular 5v5 character-based first-person tactical shooter, Valorant, continues to reach new heights with the recent announcement of its arrival on consoles, which will be kicked off with a limited beta starting this week.
After months of leaks, teasers, and speculation, this highly-anticipated announcement was made by VALORANT's Executive Producer Andy Ho and Production Director Arnar Gylfason at Summer Game Fest 2024, marking a significant moment of growth for Riot Games in the console market!
Valorant Console Beta Release Date
Riot Games is bringing the thrill of Valorant to Xbox Series X|S and PlayStation5 consoles! A limited beta is set to start on June 14, 2024, in North America, Europe, and Japan, with a potential rollout to other regions soon after.
How to Register for Valorant Console Beta
Sign up for Valorant’s Console Beta with these easy steps:
- Visit the official Valorant Console Limited Beta page
- Click on “Register”
- Sign in or create a Riot Account
- You'll receive a confirmation email upon successful registration.
If you’re selected, Riot Games will email you instructions to access the beta as well as a personal referral link to invite five friends.
Valorant's arrival on consoles marks a significant step for Riot Games, and to ensure the best possible experience, they're working closely with a team of experts familiar with both Valorant and console shooters to tackle nuances and details. However, your feedback is nothing short of invaluable!
As Gylfason stated in a recent dev diary video: “We are so dependent on console players joining the beta and telling us where are we doing it right and where are we not doing it right. We’re excited to engage directly with players so that they can help us grow and make this game amazing for everyone.”
What to Expect from Valorant On Console
Valorant on Xbox Series X/S and PlayStation 5 is built from the ground up to deliver the same core, competitive experience that players know and love from the PC version.
To ensure fair competition, cross-play between PC and console players won't be available. However, a cool feature is that PC, Xbox, and PlayStation players will share a connected inventory and progression system linked to their Valorant account. This means everyone will receive simultaneous platform releases of all live patch balances, new agents, maps, premium content, and additional live service features.
While Valorant shares some elements with other console shooters, what makes it stand out is its highly tactical combat that has high highs and low lows, allowing for a tremendous amount of expression from the player, which Gylfason states is a combination that console players are hungry for.
One console feature that Gylfason highlights is "Focus". Bringing Valorant's PC shooting mechanics (Hip-Fire and Aim Down Sights) to consoles felt clunky and limited gameplay expression. This is where the new "Focus" shooting mode comes into play. It acts like Hip-Fire but with reduced sensitivity. This lets players switch between fast aiming (peeking corners) and precise aiming (headshots) more smoothly, similar to what console players are used to in other shooters.
“When exploring whether to bring additional platforms, we knew we had to be able to offer the same uncompromising, competitive experience that we’ve provided to PC players for years: a precise, team-based, tactical shooter,” said Gylfason, “We were adamant that VALORANT’s core, competitive gameplay must feel natural on a controller; and if we couldn’t deliver on that gameplay promise - we had to be prepared to walk away from it. We hope we nailed it, but ultimately, our players will have the final say.”
Executive Producer of Valorant, Anna Donlon, assures players they won't receive a "watered-down" version of the game, and that the team is dedicated to delivering the full Valorant experience, regardless of platform.