In theory, VALORANT‘s Premier mode represents the highest and most balanced tier of competitive action for the larger player base, as competing players are separated into divisions based on average MMR. So far, the early returns show that the goal of balance is being achieved.
Premier is still in its early infancy, after just one weekend of matches on Ascent during the global open beta phase. The results seen so far when it comes to agent win/loss balance are a good sign, however.
Related: Full VALORANT Premier match schedule
According to data gathered by Blitz.gg, of the several thousand Premier matches that have taken place already, the top agents in terms of overall pick rate are all at or near a perfectly balanced win rate. The top seven in Killjoy, Jett, Omen, Sova, KAY/O, Reyna, and Sage all currently have overall Premier win rates between 49 and 51 percent, meaning not one agent has a win rate that’s more than a single point lower or higher than 50 percent.
While the most popular agent selections are noticeably balanced, the least popular agents are losing much more. Of the seven least-picked agents (Gekko, Viper, Breach, Chamber, Neon, Yoru, and Harbor), all of them except for Breach have a win rate below 48 percent, with the absolutely lowest being Harbor at 43.6 percent. It’s important to remember, though, that only Ascent has been played in Premier so far, which is a map that agents like Neon, Viper, and Yoru aren’t particularly viable on.
This impressive consistency from the game’s most popular agents though is something that Riot ideally wants to see from Premier long-term, as it means that the system for sorting teams into balanced skill divisions is working. Does this mean you’re guaranteed to only win half your games with these agents? Of course not, and you can guarantee more wins by being extra careful with your Premier teammate selection
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Published: May 3, 2023 11:36 am