Raze has served as a point of frustration in the VALORANT community due to her explosive grenades and high damage, but fans of Riot Games’ first-person shooter may be happy to know the developer is keeping its eye on the agent.
In an interview with IGN, VALORANT lead game designer Trevor Romleski addressed the agent’s place in the game’s meta and suggested Raze may be nerfed in an upcoming patch.
“[Balance is] something I’m a little less worried about, because we can change some numbers…and find the right balance for Raze so that she’s not a must-pick in every composition,” Romleski said. “And that’s something we’re already looking at right now and identifying the right opportunities and what makes sense for adjustments on the character so that she’s in the right place.”
Since Raze’s release with the closed beta on April 7, the agent has become a hot topic of debate in the VALORANT community. Raze can hold two grenades that have the ability to wipe an entire team with its sole damage, as well as with her ultimate. Both abilities have a wide area of effect and a small cast time.
Related: VALORANT players find out Raze can boost her Boom Bot with her Blast Pack
Romleski said that Raze’s abilities would ideally serve as chip damage and area denial rather than for taking easy kills. Her grenade should kill the enemies who don’t even try to avoid it, but players should “have the time to get away from it” with the right visual and audio cues. This solution could be found by adjusting the area of effect, the delay, or the sound of Raze’s grenades.
Overall, Romleski said that the team liked what she brought to the game, but would make some adjustments to balance her. The team could make her grenade more noticeable or less fast to explode and put a longer casting time for her ultimate, which is her second-most controversial ability.
It is unclear, however, when the next patch will be introduced into VALORANT or when the closed beta will end. The game’s official launch is scheduled for sometime this summer.
