Valorant will not kill Fortnite - Concluding the Riot games vs Epic games debate

Ever since Valorant was announced, the hype around this FPS tactical shooter game has been unbelievable. On multiple occasions, Valorant has been titled as a 'game killer' by many other big names in the gaming industry, including Fortnite.

Numerous videos and articles around the web questioned whether Fortnite would be able to hold its spot in the battle royale genre, or would Valorant sweep Fortnite right off its feet.

It has now been a little over a month since Valorant closed beta was first made available. The game is currently available on PC, and whether Valorant will release on PS4 / Console anytime soon is still unknown.

Image Credits: Riot Games

Undoubtedly, Valorant laid quite an initial strike on every other game in the BR genre during its closed beta and gathered millions of viewers in a very short period.

But as the game progressed and players started to understand its mechanics and other crucial aspects, gamers quickly realised that comparing Valorant and Fortnite is wildly absurd for several reasons. To narrow it down, here are the three primary reasons why Valorant will not kill Fortnite anytime soon.

Three reasons why Valorant vs Fortnite is a non-starter

# 1: Mechanics

Valorant

The two games demand completely different skillsets except for a general few like aiming, game sense, etc.

Fortnite allows you to quickly build up your defence when under attack. Due to this element in the game, players have more time to chalk up a strategy against an opponent while remaining safe in their builds.

Valorant, however, requires your prompt attention at all times. You have to be on your A-game every time while also ensuring your aim is on point since the game has no "Build you defence" mechanism like Fortnite.

Valorant peekers advantage, aim, and game sense all require time and effort to perfect. While some of these skills like the general aiming and rotation sense are transferable among most games, specific skills like 'Valorant peekers advantage' is not.

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# 2: The E-Sports scene

Fortnite

While both Riot Games and Epic Games are both big names in the gaming industry, one has to agree that Epic has recently been wacky in terms of their payouts in competitive games.

The Fortnite competitive mode allows players from all around the world to compete and earn thousands of dollars from the comfort of their homes, unlike anything we have seen before.

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# 3: Fortnite's Traverse nature

Fortnite

Unlike other shooter games, Fortnite moves 'Forward'. You heard it right. This isn't just a game. It's a story about many characters that have now become common household names in many places around the world. With every new season, the Fortnite storyline moves forward, and new characters come into play as we say goodbye to the old ones.

This model has helped Fortnite connect with their player base on an emotional level as opposed to 'purely business' like many other games.

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Would Valorant be released on Console?

Will Valorant be on Console? (Image credits: Gamecrate)

The Valorant enthusiasts on Console seem to be riddled with one question: Will Valorant be on PS4 anytime soon?

While it may be confusing to see a direct connection, a ton of Fortnite player base consists of console players who are not likely to switch to PC for Valorant.

If we are to assume that Valorant poses a threat to Fortnite's popularity, the first step Valorant will have to take would be to bring in Console support for Valorant.

Valorant on Console was recently teased by Joe Zieglar, Game Director at Riot games. In his interview he stated the following about the plans for Valorant:

While we are exploring other platforms like console and mobile, right now the team is working hard to deliver a top notch experience on PC

He went on to speak about the direction Riot Games see Valorant going in the foreseeable future:

As we built Valorant, there were a lot of wild and clever creative ideas we thought about bringing to life. But in many cases, the ideas became constraints that would alter the gameplay or the ideas themselves would be conceptually hard to grasp without material we didn’t support in the game. I think our biggest takeaway through all this was a quite simple lesson- no matter what, find the right idea for your size and scale of gameplay and build upon that to enhance the play experience.

In a nutshell, Valorant might not be the 'Fortnite killer' the internet expects it to be. The game, however, is still in closed beta, the real action will begin once the game goes entirely live.