Valorant is a free-to-play tactical shooter that launched in 2020 and has since become one of Riot's flagship competitive titles. The game blends precise gunplay with agent-based abilities, creating a strategy-heavy experience across PC and console platforms.
The franchise is navigating a mixed moment. Esports activity remains robust, with 100 Thieves capturing the Valorant trophy at Esports World Cup 2026 and the VCT continuing to draw regional talent, including a Barcelona finals featuring a performance from Spanish artist Mushkaa. AMD has also partnered with Riot on limited-edition hardware tied to the Chinese VCT circuit. On the live-service side, Patch 13.01 introduced changes to the Outlaw and stricter penalties for rank manipulation, boosting, and win-trading. However, viewership at the Esports World Cup has sparked concern within the community about the game's competitive health. Meanwhile, leaked cosmetics suggest a China-exclusive skin line is in development, and new talent continues joining the competitive scene.
via GameRiv
Riot Games is preparing one of VALORANT’s biggest updates of 2026. Patch 13.06 will introduce the new Warden rifle, the experimental Gauntlet: Glitched game mode, Agent Mastery, competitive profile improvements, a refreshed home screen, and several highly requested quality-of-lif…
via Dexerto
Riot Games has confirmed a brand-new rifle, the Warden, is coming to Valorant in the 13.06 patch alongside a new game mode where you can create your own agent. While some games are constantly adding new weapons to the mix, Riot Games has been a little more calculated with things…
via PCGamesN
The new 2900-credit, long-range weapon will arrive in Valorant alongside brand new mode, Gauntlet: Glitched, and an Agent Mastery system.
via GameRiv
VALORANT could soon be getting another major addition to its weapon arsenal. A new leak has revealed what appears to be a brand-new rifle called the Warden, featuring full-auto fire, a built-in 2x scope, and a 2,900-credit price tag. The leaked weapon immediately stands out becau…
via Esports Insider
Women’s esports has two clear centers of gravity. VALORANT has spent five years building Game Changers into a global circuit with regional competitions, open qualifiers, and an annual world championship. Meanwhile, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) has taken a different route, lev…
Valorant's 2027 VCT structure gives amateur and open teams new qualifier routes into Kickoff, Masters and even Champions.
via Dexerto
A bizarre Valorant hacker using an evil Tung Tung Tung Sahur model is wiping entire teams in seconds and putting Riot’s Vanguard anti-cheat under scrutiny.
via Esports Insider
VALORANT Champions Shanghai arrives at the end of a 2026 season that has refused to settle on a single dominant team, region, or even a definitive player. That unpredictability has been reflected at almost every major event. Nongshim RedForce clinched the Masters Santiago title;…
via Esports Insider
For many years, Fnatic was considered the strongest team in the VCT EMEA circuit. With two international trophies under its belt and countless global VCT appearances, Fnatic’s consistency and regional dominance stood out amid EMEA’s glaring struggles compared to other VCT regions…
via Esports Insider
As the dust settles on the 2026 VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) Stage 2 events, we turn our attention to the crowning event of the year: Champions Shanghai. At the heart of the discussions is one simple question: which teams are the strongest in each region? Building on an earlier…
via GameRiv
VALORANT could soon be getting a completely new type of store. Recent datamined files point toward a feature internally called “Soup,” which appears to be a limited-time shop with its own offers, bundles, and a bizarre food-inspired mechanic. Riot Games has not officially announc…
Valorant is now banning players who use instalock tools, raising a bigger question about whether third-party apps should ever automate Agent Select.
via Esports Insider
The 2026 VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) season has already produced two very different international results. The earlier Masters Santiago saw two Pacific teams meet in the grand final, while Masters London saw an unlikely Americas team win from the lower bracket. Ahead of VALORAN…
via GameRiv
Riot Games is taking another step toward protecting competitive integrity in VALORANT Patch 13.05, with new penalties targeting players caught using stream sniping and instalock tools. According to Riot’s official patch notes, the developer has started rolling out punishments for…
via GameRiv
Riot Games has revealed the VALORANT Season 2026 Act 5 Battle Pass, giving players their first proper look at the new weapon skins, free rewards, player cards, sprays, buddies, and more. The new Battle Pass arrives alongside Act 5 on August 18, 2026. This time around, Riot is lea…
via HLTV (Counter-Strike)
The women's CS scene suffers another setback.
via PCGamesN
The latest collection coming to Valorant includes a deck of cards that might, if you’re lucky, include one of six Riftbound variants.
via HLTV (Counter-Strike)
HLTV's Women's Player of the Year in 2025 has announced her departure from Counter-Strike.
via GameRiv
Phoenix is reportedly about to lose one of the best things going for him in VALORANT, and it comes down to a single number. In brief: The leaked Phoenix nerf changes in VALORANT Run It Back, Phoenix’s ultimate, would move from 6 ultimate points to 7. That is it. No changes to Cur…
via PCGamesN
With hundreds of unique Valorant skins to add to your favorite weapons at varying prices, here's every bundle and skin in one handy place.
via Esports Insider
If you tuned into the Esports World Cup expecting the usual high-octane crowd and absolute chaos you usually get during a Grand Final match, you might have noticed things felt a little quiet. Like, “empty customs lobby” quiet. According to the latest stats from Esports Charts, VA…
VALORANT leakers have surfaced a fresh set of skins that look absolutely stunning, and the twist is that this collection may never leave China. Early images show a display case packed with jade dragons, gold filigree, a koi fish folding fan, and two adorable rabbit buddies. If yo…
via GameRiv
Riot just fired a warning shot at everyone who has ever paid to climb, traded wins, or hopped into someone else’s account to farm easy lobbies. With Patch 13.01, VALORANT is rolling out upgraded detection tools built specifically to sniff out rank manipulation, and the studio say…
via Dexerto
Valorant’s 13.01 patch notes are here, with some big changes to the Outlaw, as well as rank manipulation penalties. Here’s what you need to know.
To mark the VCT EMEA Stage 2 Finals, which will take place in Barcelona from 28 to 30 August, Riot Games has teamed up with the popular Spanish artist Mushkaa to create a remix of the Valorant anthem, 'Villain', in both Spanish and Catalan. The artist told the media: "When Riot a…
100 Thieves have claimed the Valorant trophy today at Esports World Cup 2026, triumphing over local rival and reigning champions winners NRG Esports. After...
via Wccftech
Team Red has unveiled limited edition products for Valorant fans and eSports enthusiasts at BW2026. AMD Unveils VCTCN 2026 Collector's Edition, Including 9800X3D, RX 9070 XT, a Gaming Laptop and a Desktop PC at Bilibili World 2026 AMD has officially introduced a new collection of…
via PCGamesN
The energy at Valorant Masters London is electric. Everywhere I look, there are people. They're dressed as their favorite Agents - there's many a Jett, Gekko, and Sage. They're wearing their country's flags, draped around them like colorful capes - I see myriad Scottish saltires;…