Valorant players aren’t picking newer agents as Harbor, Neon, more drop down the rankings
Riot GamesRiot’s Tactical Shooter Valorant has seen a rise in pick rates for the old favorites, whilst the new kids on the block are seemingly being left behind in the dust.
Valorant is a game that often revolves around your character and their kit. Ensuring proper coordination and utility usage is key to claiming victory. With time, Riot has added in several new agents to the mix since release, with each kit often growing in complexity, making them harder to learn as well as upping their skill ceiling.
But it appears that higher-ranked Valorant players have been sticking to the old reliable rosters, as data from Blitz.GG shows newer agents like Harbor, Yoru, Chamber, and Neon all left with just a 1% pick rate.
Meanwhile, fan favorites like duelists, Jett, Reyna, and Raze dominate the ladder placing among the top 4, whilst Killjoy takes up the other top slot.
With the top dogs being mostly taken up by duelists, less popular picks of the same archetype like speedy Neon and deceptive Yoru end up being left at the bottom. At both 1% pick rates each, Radiant players are seemingly staying far away from these new agents.
Alongside Yoru and Neon on the list is the newest agent Harbor. Harbor’s water-based abilities allow him to cut lines of signs and divide up the battlefield like other controllers. However, it appears that he’s not come across as a favorite amongst players in his early days, even despite the buffs he’s received since launch. Running at only a 1.2% pick rate, he’s outclassed by other controllers that seem to do his job better such as Viper.
Chamber was the newest sentinel introduced into Valorant, and he wasn’t just good at first, he was straight overpowered. After several nerfs to his teleport, his Trademark, his Headhunter and his Tour De Force, Chamber has found himself in a bit of a rough patch ever since. No longer being the dominant force he once was, he finds himself at a measly 1.4% pick rate, with Radiant players gravitating towards Killjoy and Sage. Finally, the king is dead.