Valorant has added more customisation to the game with the introduction of the VCT 2024 Team Capsules from Valorant Esports and the release of Patch Notes 8.03. With this patch, Chamber receives a buff that should bring him back to relevancy and the Team Capsules are something the community has been crying for the longest time. With a new season of competitive and Premier around the corner, and the launch of VCT 2024 for even more hype around Valorant Esports, Valorant’s future looks exciting now and bright into the future.
Patch Notes
Breach
- Updated Breach’s voice lines and added interaction lines with Deadlock, Gekko, and Harbor.
Chamber
- Headhunter(Q): Price decreased 150 -> 100
- Tour De Force (X): Firing rate increased 0.7 -> 0.9
The ability for Chamber to use his unique weapons at lessened costs or with more power should make Chamber feel more unique as a Sentinel in comparison to Cypher, Killjoy, Deadlock and Sage who interact with their utility through physically blocking pathways or setting traps that stop opponents in their tracks. Chamber’s utility is different in that he needs to get kills to stop opponents so the fact his Headhunter price decreased allows him to carry more bullets and gives him an edge in eco rounds or pistols.
Chamber is either must pick or completely out of the meta. Hope they strike the right balance.
His power spike being uniquely different to other Sentinels fills a niche that other Sentinels do not have, and his Tour De Force also receiving a buff gives him stopping power that is arguably more oppressive than all the other Sentinels on the roster in that it has the potential to frag against any opponents unless utility is used pre-entry to move him off the position. Headhunter can also be pulled out to fire a second shot quicker after Chamber holds a single-fire weapon like a Sniper rifle which he is prone to do, even outside of the Operator or Tour De Force.
On eco’s his ability to hold angles lends itself well to using guns like the Outlaw to get a quick pick and get out, and if he sees an opponent move unexpectedly or closes the distance rapidly, having a Headhunter shot to defend himself close range should be a key strength of his, as it increases the skill ceiling and outplay potential of Chamber, and makes his lifeline to surviving close encounters much more affordable and therefore more often available even when money can be tight.
You’re not done, right? Grab a few more goodies before the E8A1 Battlepass ends on March 4. pic.twitter.com/a6IZtotNK2
— VALORANT (@VALORANT) February 27, 2024
2024 VCT Team Capsules
Fans have been crying out for team skins since the inception of Valorant Esports. The VCT leagues have been garnering a lot of popularity with the Esports scene becoming more and more established between the regions of Americas, EMEA, Pacific and China. The 44 VCT International League partner teams have a capsule that includes:
- Team-themed Classic skin
- Player Card designed by VCT teams
- Gun Buddy featuring the team’s logo
- Spray featuring the team’s logo
These Capsules are available now in-game and are under the ‘Esports’ tab. The capsules are all cosmetically very clean and neat, and even for those who don’t follow an Esports team, these cosmetics are very nice and go back to the game and organisations which could spread the popularity of the VCT scene to more players, or just introduce some players to a team of their choice.
Team Capsules include a bundle of cosmetics for the 3 regions of Americas, EMEA and Pacific.
For diehard fans, it’s an opportunity to represent your team from wherever you play around the world, with teams earning 50% of profits from their respective Capsules. The fans can now invest in the future of their favourite organisations and players financially. It is important to note this is a major revenue stream for partnered teams as last year, as a result of players’ purchasing in-game VCT Collections, Riot shared over $33 million USD with their partnered teams.
I think fans will appreciate that Riot was working collaboratively with teams for most of the past year; soliciting feedback and creative input to make sure team brands and unique identities shine through. The Inspiration behind the player cards has stories to them that represent what the organisation is about and the implicit messages within each card give each card a unique identity and flavour that is in line with the image the team wants to portray.
"This is the story of us overcoming our greatest enemy—ourselves."
Check out some of the inspiration behind Paper Rex's Player Card 🦖 pic.twitter.com/v40qospwId
— VALORANT Champions Tour (@ValorantEsports) February 27, 2024
Financially and creatively, these bundles have proven to be a hit and assist the Esports ecosystem financially without being exorbitantly expensive. It gives players the ability to cheer for their teams with a tangible reward empowers fans to put money into their favourite organisations and helps the largely hard-to-monetise fanbases most Esports organisations have.
It’s a model I think Riot should continue with, and it also helps the sustainability of the VCT system and partnered teams, as tangible financial incentives from having larger audiences will give teams more rewards for performing well or marketing their team to popularity.
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