In Valorant there was an intense match between the current top streamers, like Shroud and Summit1g, and the developers. Anyone expecting a smashing victory for the streamers was in for a surprise. The new heroine Raze is said to have played a role in this.
Who were the streamers? On April 8, 2020, 5 top streamers competed in Valorant against a 5-member team of developers. Among the streamers were such big names as Shroud, Summit1g, Fl0m, Dizzy, and Skadoodle.
The developers included former esports player Salvatore “Volcano” Garozzo in their team, who worked as a map designer in Valorant.
Match between Streamers vs. Developers is very one-sided
Here’s how the games against the developers went: The match of the top streamers, who had countless hours of experience with shooters, against the developers, who certainly should know their game very well, promised a lot of excitement. But ultimately, it turned out to be quite one-sided. The rounds went heavily in favor of the developers.
The streamers were first beaten hard 13:3 on the map Bind. The debacle was repeated with a 13:5 match on Haven. The developers clearly dominated the streamers.
These were the reasons for the streamers’ defeat: The defeat of the streamers had several reasons:
- The developers – especially “Volcano” – were also not shooter noobs
- As devs, they knew their game and the maps inside out, while the streamers had relatively little experience with the newly released game.
- The agents and their skills were expertly utilized by the devs, especially the new heroine Raze.
That’s why the new heroine Raze is problematic
What’s the problem with Raze? Raze is the newly added explosive expert at the beta launch and thus the 10th agent that players can select in the game. According to streamer Summit1g, she was one of the main reasons the game turned out so poorly for the streamers.
Raze, according to Summit1g, contradicts the philosophy of the game, which states that heroes and their skills should only support. Kills should primarily result from the player’s handling of their weapon, not from powerful hero abilities, as is the case in Overwatch.
Raze, however, has a powerful rocket launcher as a skill, which is hard to counter. Additionally, she is very mobile with her explosives, as demonstrated by the streamer xQc with a crazy stunt. Moreover, if you know the map well, she can dominate the game with her bombs.
This is what Summit1g says about Raze: All this visibly upset Summit1g in the game. After all, he was full of rage towards Raze and loudly demanded, “She has to be deleted!”
Summit1g further elaborated on his angry statement: “I’ll be honest with you, this rocket launcher is a real turn-off. It takes everything away from you, doesn’t it?” He got more and more worked up whenever he got smashed by a rocket:
„This rocket is the dumbest shit I’ve ever seen! I thought this shit [the agents’ skills] was meant to be a useful addition? But this looks like something else! A big, fucking thing full of rainbows flying at me! What the hell? The whole character has to be deleted!”
This is how the situation ended: Summit1g, who actually considers Valorant a real hit, was visibly annoyed by Raze’s dominance: “This character really feels like she ruined the whole game for me!”
This, in turn, was taken quite seriously by the developers. On Twitter, Game Director Joe Ziegler responded to Summit’s statements:
„Hey Summit, I totally understand you… we are currently looking at all the agents and how they fit into the game. We will definitely take another look at Raze. So don’t worry.”
So the developers seem to want to reassess the skill balance of the characters. Perhaps soon there will be nerfs for Raze and other heroes in the game. If you want to know exactly what the skills and characteristics of the 10 agents in Valorant are, then check out our guide on the characters in the game.
