Tag: Valorant

RiotX Arcane is a cross-media event for the upcoming ‘League of Legends’ Netflix show

Netflix’s League of Legends show is on the way, and Riot is celebrating.

Riot Games is launching RiotX Arcane, a new event to celebrate the upcoming Arcane League of Legends  show from Netflix. 

The RiotX Arcane tie-in will begin on Nov. 6, the same day as Worlds 2021, and run throughout the month across Riot’s titles. Yes, all of them. From (of course) the seminal League of Legends  to the steadily-rising esports attraction that is Valorant, Riot is keen on making Arcane  a smash-hit on Netflix. Especially after some choice words from Nicolo Laurent, CEO of Riot Games.

“With every new step we take, from launching new games to expanding our esports, we’ve always remained focused on bringing players exciting, resonant content that is authentic to the core League of Legends experience,” Laurent said in a press release. “Today, there are more players enjoying our games worldwide than ever before, validating our confidence in the League of Legends IP as we begin a new era with the launch of Arcane.”

Check out a trailer for the RiotX Arcane event for yourself below.

Streamers on Twitch will even be able to co-broadcast the show as it goes live on Netflix on Nov. 6, which is a bit odd, but cool to see that Riot is fully-embracing its livestreaming roots for the show’s premiere.

Riot isn’t bluffing when they state all of its games are getting an Arcane tie-in, by the way. Let’s take a look at some of what’s to come, shall we?

League of Legends will get Arcane-themed champion skins for Jayce, Vi, Caitlyn, and Jinx. There will also be elemental drakes, items and runes for the 2022 pre-season update, along with map accents on Summoner’s Rift. Caitlyn champion art and sustainability updates, too.

League of Legends: Wild Rift will receive a meaty update containing the Arcane Experience in-game event and champion skins for Jinx and Vi. Jayce and Caitlyn will also finally debut at long last during the Hextech Heist event.

Legends of Runeterra is getting a new PvE mode called the Path of Champions, Jayce as a new playable hero, and thematic support cards for Piltover and Zaun. Oh, and a Mega event pass!

Teamfight Tactics is keeping its Gizmos & Gadgets hype-train going with a new game mode and some more Arcane-themed tacticians and some Chibi Champions.

Valorant isn’t in the same universe as the rest, but it’s getting a RiotX Arcane Pass full of collectible items and sets. The new agent Chamber is launching as well. 

So yeah, that’s a lot of stuff! It seems Riot wants Arcane  to be a Witcher-sized hit on Netflix. Considering over 180 million people played Runeterra-adjacent games alone last month, that’s not an out-of-the-question asperation. 

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF.

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Over 180 million people logged into ‘League of Legends’ and ‘Legends of Runeterra’ last month

That’s a lot of Summoners…

More than 180 million players battled it out across League of Legends, Legends of Runeterra, Teamfight Tactics  and more in October. 

Riot Games have no shortage of popular titles, it seems. On Monday, the developer announced a new player count milestone across its games — 15 years after the company’s founding in 2006.

“Thank you to our global community for helping Runeterra reach new heights,” Riot said on Twitter. “180 million players in October and still growing!”

Curiously, “Runeterra” refers to the fictional world League of Legends  and Teamfight Tactics  take place in, which the first-person shooter Valorant  (also made by Riot) does not. So Riot’s statement is a little confusing, considering that staggeringly high player count number probably includes Valorant  as well.

Riot also included a nifty graphic to go along with the announcement, which you can check out below.

Last month, Riot announced that League of Legends’  2021 Worlds finals would make it to cinemas. Additionally, with the ever-growing popularity of League of Legends, Riot also said it would remove certain chat features to tone-down toxicity and nasty comments in the game. Meanwhile, Valorant’s  esports scene continues to grow, with several big-name organizations signing pro players.

So yeah, Riot Games is popular. Shocking, I know! 

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF.

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‘Valorant’ beginner’s guide: All you need to know to start playing

Let’s get the basics of “Valorant” out of the way.

Teamplay in Riot Games’ tactical shooter Valorant is everything. So much so that you won’t make it if you are not ready to work with others at least a little bit. Let’s have a look. You have tons of agents, abilities, and weapon combinations at your disposal in Valorant, but what really sets the game apart from other shooters is the pronounced need to work with others to achieve your goal.

But before we talk more about teamwork, we’ll introduce you to some of the basics that are critical when you take your first steps into the world of Valorant. Let’s get started.

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Version1 announced a new all-women ‘Valorant’ pro team set to compete at VCT Game Changers

This is Version1’s second pro Valorant team signing.

A few high-profile all-women Valorant pro teams have signed to big esports organizations this year, and VersionX from Version1 is the latest. The team will hit the ground running by competing in VCT Game Changers Series 3 on Sept. 24, along with 32 others, including Complexity’s GX3.

“Supporting diversity and inclusion in gaming has been an important part of our organization from our founding,” Brett Diamond, chief operating officer at Version1, said in a press release. “The investments being made in women’s esports by organizations and game publishers are laying the foundation for a bright future. VersionX will immediately access the support structure we offer all of our teams: housing in Minnesota, state-of-the-art equipment and a world-class practice facility, media and content resources, and compensation that enables the players to be full-time esports competitors.”

The team members include:

Check out the team’s flashy announcement trailer for yourself below.

Most of VersionX have a competitive history with each other, too. Natty, Milkway, and Karra were part of the “Just Breathe” team in VCT Game Changers Series 2, where they placed 7/8th in the tournament. 

“Our goal is to be the top female team in Valorant, and we know that with hard work, that will come,” Milkway, VersionX’s team captain, and in-game leader, said in the same press release. “When we started playing together, we wanted to be good enough to make it to the main VCT Game Changers event, and we’ve accomplished that. As VersionX, we’ll continue to build on our success.”

Good luck to VersionX and all the other teams competing this weekend!

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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‘League of Legends’ and ‘Valorant’ are just some of the games coming to Riot’s desktop client

Finally, you won’t need several launchers to play Riot’s games.

After all these years, Riot Games is launching a dedicated desktop client for its titles. Soon Legends of Runeterra, Teamfight Tactics, Valorant, and League of Legends will be available on a single launcher that begins rolling out on Sept. 20. 

“With the new Riot Client, it’ll be easier for you to discover and access all of what we have to offer,” Riot said in a statement. “All desktop Riot games will be accessible from one client, with each game having its own dedicated product page with game-specific content including the latest news and events. You’ll be able to clean up your desktop and only have one Riot Client launcher where all your favorite Riot games will live!”

Check out a small teaser of the Riot Client for yourself below.

Riot stresses that you won’t need to download or install new applications for the new client. Though if you would like to maintain individual desktop shortcuts, that’s doable. While every game in Riot’s portfolio will use the launcher, each will have a dedicated landing page along with details specific to that game. There’ll be extra stuff like cinematic backgrounds too! 

Riot Games will distribute the desktop client next week; its worldwide rollout won’t begin until Oct. 4 to ensure stability. The Riot Client’s support page doesn’t really say how you opt into using it on Sept. 20, though. Guess we’ll just have to wait for more information!

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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Tyson ‘TenZ’ Ngo thinks it’s too soon to call anyone the best at ‘Valorant’

Talented and humble, the best qualities a prodigy can have.

By most measurable statistics Tyson “TenZ” Ngo is the world’s top Valorant player, but he thinks it’s too soon for anyone to hold that title. In a recent report with Upcomer, the prodigy humbly spoke about who he believes is the absolute best. His answer? Nobody. At least, not yet. 

“Nobody’s like Faker, nobody’s like s1mple where they’re just way above the competition,” said Ngo via Upcomer. “You have a handful of really top performers, but everybody can keep improving, and there’s nobody way ahead of the game currently.

He continued: “I just play with a lot of confidence and coming up in my time from [Counter-Strike], I’ve learned that it’s a lot more of a mental game than you think, and confidence can bring you a long way and especially you can make decisions.”

On Wednesday, Ngo and his team Sentinels just came off a 2-0 defeat against G2 Esports at the Valorant Champions Tour Masters. So he knows that despite being arguably the best, nobody is untouchable in Valorant just yet.

Regardless of the defeat, Ngo and will be back in the tournament tomorrow when Sentinels face off against F4Q.

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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Watch: Delz1k pulls off incredible clutch win during Valorant Champions Tour

Joaquin “delz1k” Espinoza pulls off the unthinkable during the VCT Masters.

The Valorant Champions Tour Masters may have had its wildest play already, as Joaquin “delz1k” Espinoza from KRÜ Esports decimated an entire team by himself on Sunday.

During a match between Zeta Division and KRÜ Esports, Espinoza found himself in a dire situation. The rest of his team were gone, gunned down early by Zeta, who still had four other players on the field — and they just planted the spike. Despite seemingly insurmountable odds, Valorant is a game where one player alone can pull off a win, though, which is exactly what Espinoza did. Slowly creeping his way into the bomb site, then began taking the rest of Zeta out before they knew what hit them.

Check out this fantastic clutch by Espinoza for yourself below.

KRÜ Esports went on to squeak out a victory over Zeta during this match, and it was a brilliant showcase of how exciting Valorant is as an esport. 

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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All-women ‘Valorant’ team GX3 signs with Complexity Gaming

With names like Alimonstr and Maddiesuun, Complexity GX3 will likely take the Valorant scene by storm.

GX3, one of the top women’s Valorant teams, just signed with Complexity Gaming to form “Complexity GX3” as part of an initiative to champion gender equality in esports. This first-ever all-women roster from Complexity will compete in the upcoming Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) Game Changers Qualifier, which will take place on Sept. 24.

“GX3 uniquely embodies our organization’s core values, and we’re thrilled to welcome them into the Complexity family,” Jason Lake, Founder & CEO of Complexity Gaming, said in a press release. “The squad’s competitive credentials coupled with their growing platform for female empowerment have the potential to shake up the gaming world in a major way.”

The team members include:

Check out the Complexity GX3 announcement trailer for yourself below. 

“We strive to leave a lasting legacy on the esports world both competitively and culturally,” Alimonstr said in the same press release. “Signing with a reputable and supportive organization like Complexity will not only equip us with tools to enhance our performance but also a platform to kick start important industry conversations about instilling change.”

Everyone on the team has an extensive background in professional esports, especially Alimonstr, a six-time Esports World Cup Champion. Hopefully, Complexity GX3 will tear up the VCT Game Changers Qualifier when it all goes down later this month.

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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New ‘Valorant’ skins were co-designed by Grammy winning EDM artist Zedd

These might be the most beautiful skins ever to grace a video game.

Grammy winners don’t collaborate on video games all that often, but that’s precisely what EDM artist Anton “Zedd” Zaslavski did with Valorant’s new Spectrum weapon skin bundle. 

These sleek skins for the Bulldog, Guardian, Classic, Phantom and knife weapons are supposed to evoke the neon hues of a night club. If you happen to win a match with one of these skins equipped, the battlefield will transform into a dazzling EDM rave. It’s wild stuff, and developer Riot Games wanted Zaslavski’s expertise to help pull the concept off.

“This is honestly a dream come true,” Zaslavski said via Billboard. “I’ve never done anything like this, and I get incredibly excited any time I get to do something I haven’t done before. I’m such a big fan of the game. When I’m not on tour, I literally play every day.”

Check out Zaslavski introducing Spectrum for yourself below.

For an example of the rave aesthetic in action, check out what happens when you finish someone off with the Spectrum Classic below.

The Valorant community is already elated over Spectrum, letting Zaslavski know right away how impressive the new skins are.

If you would like to pick up the Spectrum line for yourself, the skin package is already available via Valorant’s in-game store.

Written by Kyle Campbell on behalf of GLHF. 

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