A New Challenger on the Console Scene: Valorant Makes Its Grand PS5 Debut

Valorant, the massively successful free-to-play hero shooter from Riot Games, is coming to the battlefield of consoles. This shockingly big news broke across Summer Game Fest, and Riot will roll out two distinct versions of the gameplay on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S especially to maintain the competitive experience on the console. Among the fans eagerly awaiting this rollout are enthusiasts for the PlayStation 5, the Sony’s latest-generation game console. These fans will be especially keen to see how Valorant takes full advantages of the console’s powerful hardware.

Valorant on PS5: A Fresh Playground for Competitive Shooters

Having dominated PC for years, Valorant is finally ready to split into living rooms on next-gen consoles such as the PS5. Riot says that the decision is to preserve Valorant’s core competitive gameplay, making it feel as natural with a controller as with a mouse and keyboard. But be warned, there will be no cross-play between console and PC players. Not enough players use controllers, so the focus on competition will ensure that Vivendi stays on top and does not lose to an influx of console players. There will, however, be a ‘connected, shared inventory’ and cross-progression between accounts, making it easy to move between platforms.

Riot’s Promise: Uncompromised, Competitive Valorant Experience on PS5

But take heed, Riot isn’t taking this expansion lightly: Arnar Gylfason, Valorant’s production director, told me that his team is committed to making ‘a tactical shooter that feels right at home on the PS5’. This is why the team is experimenting with gamepad sensitivities and shooting types. Riot wants to exact Valorant’s gameplay to the T for the console crowd. There will be a ‘focus’ shooting mode, for example, that plays like the ‘hip-fire’ mode in Valorant but is more comfortable for console shooters.

Custom-Built Gameplay for the PS5: A Deep Dive

In adapting Valorant for the PlayStation 5, this means Riot Games can guarantee that ‘the basics on the console controller feel as natural as possible’, according to Ashgar. In bringing Valorant to consoles, Riot is hedging its bets. The titular ‘focus’ mode (which lowers sensitivity) reflects the slow-and-steady style of console play, while letting players effortlessly switch between scrambled movement and sniper-style shooting. But the game’s split personality – with its twin identities, PC and console – also threatens to drag down both Valorant and console FPS games themselves. Ashgar worries that bringing Valorant to consoles won’t necessarily enhance the quality of PC games, but it definitely runs the risk of lowering it. Forks only dilute.

Valorant's Journey and Community Perspective

Upon its release in 2020, Valorant immediately became a player favourite among hero shooters. Its unique characters, with their strategic gameplay depth, make for an addictive mixture that has persisted even as some players have let their toxic attitudes seep into the game. With its PS5 release, Valorant has put itself – once again – in the spotlight for judgement, but this time by a whole new audience of console players. The upcoming closed beta, which is set to start later this month, will be the first chance for the community to have its say on this console console debut.

How to Join the Valorant PS5 Adventure

Gamers eager to get in on the action can sign up for the PS5 Valorant limited beta, which begins 14 June in a number of regions, including the US, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe and Japan, with more regions to follow shortly after. Grab a spot and you can see for yourself how Riot translated the high-stakes world of Valorant to the console scene.

Unveiling the PS5: A Perfect Match for Valorant?

With Valorant now live on the PS5 console, how did they come to pair Riot’s first-person shooter (FPS) with Sony’s flagship gaming platform? When Valorant launched on console, it was immediately clear that the PS5 console was the ultimate teammate for Valorant. The all-new super-powerful processing and graphic capabilities make it an enticing console. In terms of gameplay, the technologically advanced DualSense controller offers a whole new level of interaction and responsiveness compared with the original DualShock controller. This seems like a good match for the needs of a super-fast, highly strategic, competitive FPS experience.

But when Valorant moves to the PS5, Riot Games will be trying to bridge the delicate equation of skill and adrenaline that fuels its PC upstart to console for the first time. In doing so, it stands to reshape what it means to play a competitive shooter on the console, too. It’ll be a while yet before Valorant on PS5 can fight it out with games like Call of Duty and Destiny 2. Before its official arrival on the console next summer, Riot will have to prove that it can find the equilibrium between the game’s intricacy and grip – including its steep skill curve of tempered learning that holds it in its material – and give the PC-bound experience a new canvas to flex on. Ultimately, it will be up to the players themselves to decide the answer to Riot’s gambit. But they will. Come summer next year, quippy kids and grumpy old men alike will find themselves armed and ready to blast their way across the supplemental battlefields of Valorant’s tactical invasion on console, one clutch round at a time.