Riot dev addresses rope accuracy and speed advantage in VALORANT

One VALORANT player used the ropes on Split to outplay their opponents yesterday, sparking the discussion of an unfair advantage. And now, Riot Games has shed some light on the matter.

VALORANT dev Pearl “ManWolfAxeBoss” Hogbash addressed the issue, explaining that accuracy on ascenders is actually “a bit worse” than in a walking state. But moving up the ropes does feel faster because there’s no acceleration time.

“One of the big differences is the ascenders don’t have the same acceleration as normal movement, so you hit max speed almost instantly,” the dev said. “That and verticality, like you mentioned, makes them feel pretty quick.”

The player was able to climb ropes rapidly to peek and headshot their targets because they hit max speed instantly, which is about as fast as running with an Operator, according to the VALORANT dev. On the ground, players have to walk a second before ramping up to top speed.

But when it comes to the player’s accuracy, ManWolfAxeBoss admits they were “nice shots” and had “some luck involved.”

While Riot isn’t making any changes to ascenders yet, the VALORANT dev explained that the team will “keep an eye” on it.