‘Valorant’ discovery suggests mobile scope
“Valorant” combines colorful characters, special abilities, tactical team play and esports support. Image: League of Legends via AFP Relaxnews
Rising star of the esports scene, team shooter “Valorant” could be coming to mobile in one form or another.
Riot Games appears to have been experimenting with the idea of bringing “Valorant” to mobile, even if today’s main focus is the PC experience.
The “League of Legends” studio has been diversifying, announcing a slate of new titles upon the 10-year anniversary of its tentpole game in October 2019.
With a public-facing beta testing phase launching from April 7 onwards, and staged rollout tied to livestream participation, “Valorant” has succeeded in attracting eyeballs and esports pros ahead of a mid-2020 release.
Yet although Riot staffers have emphasized that PC remains their priority for the time being, the game already appears capable of supporting mobile to one degree or another.
Reddit user Spacixr found out that playing the game on a laptop and switching into tablet mode could cause an array of new icons to appear onscreen, complete with working touch controls.
Too late for an April Fools prank, the discovery was proof of concept for an earlier spot from within the datamining community.
Breaking the thread of leaks real quick. Going to use the bathroom and get something to drink then extract more assets. After assets I will get sounds then I will get strings such as "You leveled up" or whatever they may have.
Feel free to use whatever you see here, I don't mind
— 🎄 Santa Ricky 🎄 (@FireMonkey__) April 4, 2020
Should “Valorant” make its way to both mobile and console, its tri-platform presence would be comparable to that of “Fortnite”, “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds” and the “Call of Duty” franchise.
When asked about console versions specifically, lead designer Trevor Romleski did not mention console or mobile specifically.
Instead he told livestreamer Tim “TimtheTatman” Betar that “we’re open to exploring new opportunities for other platforms, but for the time being our current focus is on the PC platform.” JB
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