Riot Games has published the list of upcoming changes set to arrive with the launch of Valorant’s Patch 2.06, and there are major buffs on the way for two of the games least picked Agents: Viper, and Yoru.
Viper has continued to struggle in Valorant ever since the beta, and nearly a year down the line her pick rate still hasn’t improved. As a controller, her utility is bested by other Agents, such as Omen and Brimstone, who are more mobile and have the option of using their kit offensively as well as defensively.
Yoru, meanwhile, one of the newest additions to the Valorant roster, has had almost no impact on the meta whatsoever despite the early promise of his flashy-looking kit. Too often his teleport and ultimate are too easy to counter, while his fake footsteps and flashes aren’t particularly subtle.
Both Agents have long been in need of improvement (though Viper for considerably longer, of course), and this week’s patch certainly seems as though it’s set to deliver.
In the case of Viper, in fact, the changes could prove meta-shifting given just how much “decay” damage is now inflicted for anybody who touches her utility. Here’s the overview:
| Toxin (passive)Enemies that cross through Viper’s Poison Cloud, Toxic Screen, or Viper’s Pit are instantly inflicted with at least 50 decay. Their decay level increases the longer they remain in contact with toxin.While in cloud, Decay over time decreased 15 >>> 10When out of Viper’s cloud, delay before health regen decreased 2.5 >>> 1.5 |
| Poison Cloud (Q)Can now immediately be redeployed when picked up, but grants a temporary charge instead of a permanent chargeIf active when Viper dies, Poison Cloud now remains up for an additional 2 seconds, or until Viper runs out of fuel.Pickup distance increased 200 >>> 400 |
| Toxic Screen (E) If active when Viper dies, Toxic Screen now remains up for an additional 2 seconds before deactivatingFull blind distance from the wall increased to better match the blind distance from the edge of smokes |
| Snakebite (C) Equip time decreased 1.1 >>> .8 |
Riot reaffirmed its vision for Viper in the patch notes:
“When compared to other Controllers, we want Viper to make big, committed decisions that truly alter the map and how both sides plan around her influence. She should claim ground with force and dare opponents to challenge her.”
As for Yoru, Riot is hoping that a number of small tweaks to his kit unshackles his ability to lurk and flank as intended. That starts with allowing him to teleport while using his ultimate, which now requires less orbs to ready. His teleport is now harder to detect, too, and his flashes improved. Here’s the breakdown:
| Blindside (Q) Flash activation time decreased 0.8>>> 0.6 secondsFlash duration increased from 1.1>>>1.5 |
| Gatecrash (E) Gatecrash is no longer refreshed on kills and is instead replenished every 35 secondsLifetime of the Gatecrash fragment increased 20 seconds >>> 30 secondsThe range at which the Gatecrash fragment is revealed from stealth decreased 7m >>> 4mVisuals for visibility range added to the moving fragment |
| Dimensional Drift (X) Ult Points reduced 7 >>> 6 Yoru can now reactivate Gatecrash while in Dimensional Drift |
Another key takeaway from Patch 2.06 beyond changes to Agents is the much-requested nerf to the Bucky, the pesky pump-action shotgun that was far too powerful at close ranges when using the right-click alternate fire function. It’s now been rebalanced so that both primary and secondary firing modes require more accuracy and do less damage.
Finally, there’s the addition of ‘Head Related Transfer Function’ (HRTF) to Valorant’s audio, a technology that improves the 3D effect of sound detection for players using headphones. This should make it much easier to determine which direction sounds like footsteps and gunshots are coming from.
You can check out a before and after video that demonstrates how the new technology works below.
For the full patch notes, including new quality of life improvements and bug fixes, check out the full Patch 2.06 notes here. For a reminder of what was new in Patch 2.05, it’s here.
