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Deadlock's official art in VALORANT.
Image via Riot Games

VALORANT’s 2 newest agents are winning in Premier, but they’re hardly being used

The numbers don't lie.

Anyone keeping up with the state of the VALORANT meta knows that Deadlock is fighting for her life to stay relevant. But both her and Iso have proven to be winners during this current Premier season, although very players are utilizing them, especially the Norwegian sentinel.

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According to Blitz.gg, after just two weeks of the current Episode Seven, Act Three Premier season, the two agents with the highest win percentage are Deadlock and Iso. But those win percentages are not a reflection of their popularity in Premier; Iso sits at about the halfway point amongst agents with a 1.9 percent pick rate, while Deadlock is dead last with a paltry 0.4 percent.

Iso’s middling pick rate and high win rate both make sense together; with only a couple vital Premier matches scheduled each week, teams and players would be less likely to rely on an agent that’s so new. On the other hand, teams facing Iso won’t be as prepared for him. Additionally, he has a strong kit, highlighted by a very useful Vulnerable ability, a space-creating bulletproof wall, and an ultimate that’s perfect for kickstarting a retake.

Deadlock, though, is a very interesting case, as it’s hard to highlight some of her strengths right away, but there is value in her kit that could help a Premier team. Barrier Mesh can be quite useful in slowing down enemy executes and retakes, and the Annihilation ultimate is one of the better ultimates in a one-vs-one situation.

The weak state of her GravNet and Sonic Sensor will likely keep her pick rate low though, even after the most recent buffs to GravNet. With a pick rate that will likely stay low, this will keep her Premier sample size low, which means there’s no definitive answer to whether or not she’s a winning agent. The more an agent is picked in Premier, the closer to 50 percent their win rate is; currently the top four are Omen, Jett, Sova, and Killjoy, all of which boast a win rate that’s no more than 1.5 percentage points higher or lower than 50.


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Author
Image of Scott Robertson
Scott Robertson
VALORANT lead staff writer, also covering CS:GO, FPS games, other titles, and the wider esports industry. Watching and writing esports since 2014. Previously wrote for Dexerto, Upcomer, Splyce, and somehow MySpace. Jack of all games, master of none.