Riot denies VALORANT leaks for agents Crusader and Shatter, says they’re “old canceled characters”

If you wanted to see a riot shield in VALORANT, don’t get your hopes up. Riot Games’ lead character designer Ryan “Morello” Scott has confirmed that the recent leaks for Crusader and Shatter are actually for older agents that were canceled.

Morello also said that people are “reading too much” into the game files since many things have been removed since the game’s launch in June. As a result, the information in the recent leaks is outdated and hasn’t been taken out of the files yet.

Based on leaks, Shatter was supposed to be an agent that could create a decoy of himself to trick enemies. There were also rumors that his clone could run forward into an area and explode and damage nearby enemies after a certain amount of time.

Crusader, on the other hand, was rumored to have a breakable shield that he could equip, use to block damage while planting the spike, and could even be thrown. He also reportedly had a throwable grenade in his kit at some point.

Many fans weren’t too keen on having a riot shield character join VALORANT‘s ranks since the ability wouldn’t match the game’s tactical playstyle. A shield can negate too many abilities, combos, and strategies simply by blocking all damage sent at a player.

A decoy character isn’t as game-breaking but it could be troublesome and difficult to balance. An exploding decoy would also provide plenty of utility to a team, both on the offensive and defensive end.