Dread it, run from it—VALORANT timing arrives all the same

In just about all competitive shooters like VALORANT with a fast time-to-kill, the concept of sheer timing leading to one’s death has long felt like something deserving of being studied by the world’s greatest minds.

The time in the round is dwindling, you’ve tried to account for just about all the possibilities you could possibly think of before deciding to finally make a move, and then, bam—you died without even getting a shot off.

On Sept. 23, Reddit user u/Spare_Factor2264 took it upon themselves to try and conquer VALORANT timing head-on and claim just one small victory for the community. Unfortunately, however, the result was just about as you’d expect.

As shown in the 22-second clip, Spare_Factor2264 is set up in an oh-so-familiar spot for those who have ever had the pleasure of anchoring a site in VALORANT. The round count is 11-11 and any pick here is sure to help cement the fate of the game on Sunset. Countering what was presumably a team that had heavily been hitting B, Spare_Factor2264 has three teammates stacked there, leaving them to hold A Main all by themselves.

Soon enough, gunfire and enemy pings begin firing off as the listless strafe taps come out from Spare_Factor2264 while they continue to wait until something definitive happens.

Finally, two of Spare_Factor2264’s teammates make the call that it’s looking like they’re trying to go B.

It’s at this point that Spare_Factor2264 puts their experience to the test. Knowing that it’s not going to be as simple as leaving their mark and running to the other site, Spare_Factor2264 takes their crosshair off of A Main for a millisecond to draw out any lurkers.

In that time, however, the plan almost works too well as out of nowhere, the enemy Jett seemingly spawns at the corner and jump-scare sprays Spare_Factor2264 down to the ground.

In the comment section, the consensus was clear: You simply can’t control VALORANT timing.

“One does not simply trick Val timing,” a Redditor commented on the thread. “Val timing tricks you.”

“The best way to proof yourself against timing is not to be exposed to a certain angle when looking at a different angle,” another replied.

Ultimately, just like a moving one-tap from afar or a spam kill through a smoke, timing remains one of those things that doesn’t show up on the scoreboard, yet can absolutely define rounds. And if you do fall victim to it, all you can really say to yourself is “gg, go next.”