VALORANT’s first new weapon, the Outlaw, might be coming sooner than you think

As one of Riot Games’ premier live-service titles, VALORANT is constantly changing, with balance patches alongside new maps and agents multiple times a year. Yet one thing that has remained relatively constant is the arsenal of weapons at your disposal—that is, until now.

After three and a half years, VALORANT’s buy mode might finally be getting a major update with the game’s first new weapon coming with the release of Episode Eight in January 2024, according to the ValorLeaks Twitter/X account.

The Outlaw is a sniper rifle that will seemingly act as a midway point between VALORANT’s two existing snipers, the Marshal and the Operator.

The official details about the mechanics of the weapon have not been released yet, but based on the leaked images, we know it has a two-barreled silhouette that is markedly different from the sleek single barrel of the Marshal. Yet, the weapon lacks the heftiness of the Operator. According to the ValorantUpdates Twitter/X account, the Outlaw will fire two bullets at once, explaining the double barrels.

Sitting at a mid-range price point of 2,400 credits, the Outlaw is the perfect middle ground between the Marshal’s 950-credit price tag and the Operator’s heavy investment of 4,700 credits.

Players who prefer to take sniper duels have often been shoved aside in favor of a meta that prioritizes using all-around automatic rifles, namely VALORANT’s two premier weapons: the Phantom and Vandal. In virtually every imaginable situation, these two rifles are the best value, and a fully loaded out kit consists of any agent buying all of their utility, full shields, and either a Phantom or Vandal.

This leaves sniping as a choice reserved only for a few players who manage their credits properly and remains a relatively niche skill in the game. Unlike titles like Apex Legends, where anyone can loot a sniper rifle and have it as their weapon of choice, VALORANT’s economy doesn’t support players who like to regularly play from a distance with these weapons.

In some specific cases, certain players will choose to save up for an Operator, which is the only weapon in the game that can kill a fully armored enemy with just one body shot. If the leaks about the Outlaw are true, it will be able to one-shot enemies with half armor. Due to the Operator’s hefty cost, it is normally reserved for only situations where the team has an excess of credits and hopes that a teammate playing as Jett or Chamber can capitalize on sniping their enemies.

With the addition of the Outlaw, players who generally prefer a sniping playstyle should be able to have a reasonable alternative that doesn’t come with the pressure of investing so many credits into an Operator.

According to leaks, the Outlaw will be released in January 2024 with the beginning of Episode Eight, Act One, and will likely shake up the meta upon its release.