VALORANT has a stagger effect that briefly slows you down when shot

It’s only been a day since Riot Games unveiled its new first-person shooter, VALORANT, but fans are already learning plenty about how the game works and its mechanics. G2 Esports streamer Joel “Orb” Kumlin recently got a chance to playtest the game and has confirmed that it will have a stagger effect that slows players when shot.

This stagger effect has been seen in multiple FPS titles before. But in a game like VALORANT, which has been marketed as a punishing, lethal shooter, it could be even more damning if you’re caught while being aggressive. As noted by multiple people, VALORANT‘s time-to-kill is extremely low, so it only takes a few bullets for a player to die.

Like Orb said, this means that a rapid style of play won’t be encouraged for most players because if they get shot once, their movement speed will be slowed significantly and they’ll be caught out in the open.

Patience and good positioning seem to be emphasized, even in the quick gameplay teaser Riot released. Players in the video weren’t rushing the enemy team but were instead holding angles and playing slowly.

Abilities like Sova’s Owl Drone and Recon Bolt or Cypher’s Spycam would also force players to move ahead at a moderate pace and only make smarter, more rapid-pace decisions when more information is acquired. Unless you have the utmost confidence in your aim and your team, you won’t be able to simply bullrush into an enemy team in VALORANT.

Orb also mentioned that this stagger effect poses an interesting problem for snipers. Players with rifles or submachine guns could continuously tap at them while they’re staggered, but the sniper will only be able to let off one shot.

VALORANT is set to be released this summer.