Valorant's Volatility

#1

NotDelicious

Valorant is a very volatile game. Think about it. A player getting a spam kill through smoke that helps them win a bonus round that changes the trajectory of the game. Or a player deciding to tap the spike and swing as opposed to sticking to half first, because their aim feels better that day. I’m not saying it’s all luck or that skill doesn’t matter. Top players have incredible gamesense. They know when to spam through smoke, when to tap the spike, and they make smart, informed decisions. But the reality is that there are countless tiny nuances in every round and game that make consistent results almost impossible. Even if teams play at their best, do prep beforehand, vod review, whatever, there are still these factors that make the game so volatile. At the highest level, any team can beat another team, given the conditions are right.

In my opinion, results shouldn't be taken TOO seriously. FNC vs LOUD Lock In, Acend vs Gambit Champs, G2 vs T1 Bangkok, EDG vs TH Champs. If you replayed each match five more times, I genuinely believe each replay would produce a different outcome. And this doesn't apply to just the grand finals of international tournaments (I'm just listing some examples), it could apply to any game. Like EG making Tokyo due to 100T loss vs MIBR knife kill. Some ppl may see my G2 flair and say I'm coping, but I'm not taking anything away from T1's win. Nor am I taking away the credit that each match winner deserves. On that day, they were the better team, so they deserve the win and the glory. Whichever team that wins on the day of the match deserves the win for sure. I'm just trying to point out the things that make the game so volatile. The teams at the top are so close in skill level that its these small nuances that can be the determining factor for who wins.

I think one of the reasons why G2 is so consistent is because they try to minimize valorant's volatility and unpredictable moments by sticking to solid fundamentals. By playing "textbook valorant", they adapt to and manage the game’s unpredictability better than most. But even for them, many matches still come down to those tiny moments and split-second decisions.

But imo, this volatility is what makes the game so exciting, since you never truly know who is going to win. I also feel like this is why upsets are more common in this game, as opposed to other esports or sports.

What do you guys think?

#2

Congo1

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allat

#3

tiAsunNS

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Chatgpt summarize this for me

#7

Asscrackbandit

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Valorant is a highly volatile game where small, unpredictable moments—like a spam kill through smoke or a risky defuse decision—can shift the entire outcome of a match. While skill and preparation (like VOD reviews and strong fundamentals) matter, even top teams are affected by countless tiny variables that make consistent results hard to achieve. As a result, any team can beat any other at the highest level, given the right circumstances.

The writer argues that results shouldn't be taken too seriously, pointing to famous matches where outcomes could have easily changed if replayed. They emphasize that this isn't to discredit winners, but to highlight the game's inherent unpredictability. Teams like G2 stay consistent by minimizing randomness through strong fundamentals, but even they can't fully escape Valorant’s chaotic nature.

Ultimately, the volatility is part of what makes Valorant thrilling, leading to frequent upsets and keeping outcomes uncertain.

#14

tiAsunNS

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Chatgpt, make it a short 2 or 3 sentences

#15

Asscrackbandit

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Valorant’s inherent volatility means that even the smallest moments—like a lucky spam or bold defuse—can swing an entire match, making consistent results elusive. While strong fundamentals help teams like G2 stay steady, no one is immune to the game’s chaos, which is exactly what keeps it thrilling and unpredictable.

#18

tiAsunNS

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Thanks Chatty

#34

1One1

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Lack of reading comprehension

#43

tiAsunNS

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Chatgpt create a clapback for this

#4

Jivko

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congrats or sorry, whatever suits better

#5

Maniacwolf

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gimmicks don’t win championships, you see it in every sport. G2 don’t rely on gimmicks, they use them but that’s not their entire strategy or what they are good at necessarily

#9

NotDelicious

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Thats my whole point about why G2 is consistent. They have solid fundamentals and try to minimize the volatility. But even though G2 doesn't rely on gimmicks, they still don't win. Why? Cuz the game is that volatile.

#12

mrbloombloom

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tbf at some level gimmicks can win u events, like KC won kickoff last year thanks to that, but they then disappeared for the rest of the season bc gimmicks do, indeed, not allow u to consistently win at the highest level bc they don't make up for the lack of tactical depth

#13

NotDelicious

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Yes exactly. Look at T1 with their double-duelist comps. They won Bangkok fair and square, but now they no longer work and they're ass

#19

catNmouse

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iso changes fucked them over. t1 tried to have a 7 map pool on top of it too so i just think it was too much to handle

#24

NotDelicious

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Nah I think its mostly just that people got used to their gimmicks and found ways to counter them

#16

Maniacwolf

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Yeah g2 relies on controlling the game and not just the round. Kc last year won a lot of rounds because of well thought out plays, but after they ran out of them they went downhill fast.

#6

229fn

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why is everyone making fun of him for putting all that effort into making a thread. it was interesting to read and honestly kinda true, upsets really are part of what makes vct vct

#10

Congo1

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its just jokes. I am too busy to read this much right now. Only tabbing in for a minute at a time

#8

karb0n

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Grok explain this in fortnite terms

#11

229fn

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g2 skybased and then pickaxed the floor

#17

darklord69

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it's true, but people refuse to have any nuance.
It's the reason i think trophy winners are often overrated, with how close some of the finals are theres zero reason to treat the winners players as much better than the losing team.

#28

kingop3n

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thats actually so true. tiny differences that won them the round impacted the match massively. the last final on the int stage that wasn't a 3-2 was champs 2023 being a 3-1 to EG every map was except one went to double digits tho. and then masters Tokyo was the last time we had a stomp of 3-0 with FNC beating EG, but then it was 13-8, 13-11, 14-12 so still a very close every game somewhat

#32

NotDelicious

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Yeah just goes to show how close the level of competition is at the highest level, and as a result, tiny little things could have drastic effects on the outcome of a game

#44

kingop3n

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alot of the game is luck based i dont get how ppl dont realise that bcos even a great call youre banking on the fact you know how theyll act

#20

yuriito

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It´s true. Compare that to Overwatch where the same two korean teams win everything

#21

themaniel

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Good take

#22

eStos

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or there MIGHT be a script

#23

Maniacwolf

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can you leak it so I can be a millionaire

#25

delighted

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T1 vs G2 Pearl literally is a perfect example of this

#26

jawn

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welcome to every game in the history of humanity, luck is part of the equation in everything in life

#27

TermiAutumnSoloGOATS

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LOL COPE HARDER OMEGALUL
Bro wrote a whole ass essay trying to say Bangkok was a fluke 😹😹😹
GOLD2 CHOKE2 XD

#29

NotDelicious

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TermiAutumnSoloGOATS
Flag: South Korea
Registered: May 22, 2025
Last post: May 22, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Posts: 4

#30

Conceit

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People who make alts just to bait are such pussies

#31

TermiAutumnSoloGOATS

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american flag detected opinion rejected

#33

Tempest24

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🤓

#35

1One1

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Thanks for your effort to make a low quality bait

#36

sexwithgiraffes

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you know that saying that g2 choked it contradicts saying that t1 deserved it right

#37

pistolroundVyseUlt

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in short luck is an extremely big factor and just little moments can snowball the entire game

#38

NotDelicious

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Luck plays a role but thats not the main point of my thread. Im trying to say that there are so many variables (including luck but also things like how good one’s aim is feeling on a particular day, mental state, etc) that makes it almost impossible to be consistent. So teams should aim to minimize the volatility of these variables

#39

Aayan

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no way a real high effort post

I think it's designed that way by Riot tbh, since it makes the esport more entertaining to watch as almost anyone can go on a run
in Valorant it feels like the favourite for a tournament wins much less compared to CS for example

so in a way Val sacrifices 'competitiveness' for entertainment value (not to say it isn't competitive in absolute terms btw, I mean within context to something like CS, or even Football/Traditional sports where the base game is simple and often goes unchanged for years)

#40

NotDelicious

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Not sure if riot intentionally designed this but nevertheless the game has become very volatile. Imo its the biggest reason why its so hard for teams to create a dynasty. Do you think the game would ever evolve to a point where teams became so good that the volatility of the game would be irrelevant?

#41

Aayan

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When they were creating the game they advertised it as an 'esports ready tactical shooter', so they def built the game with a vision for esports. I think using their experience with league they def had this in mind, but even if the 'volatility' aspect wasn't something they considered it was just something you just can't avoid with a game like Val, as you add more abilities you add exponentially more ways for said abilities to interact.

I think it really depends tbh, with the direction the game is currently going in I can for sure see the game becoming more volatile (due to what I mentioned above). But Riot have already kind of acknowledged that the game is becoming too cluttered (https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/valorant-dev-accepts-theres-too-much-random-crap-cluttering-up-the-screen-the-balance-team-generally-agrees-with-this-take/) so maybe they'll nerf util across the board in the future to prevent this kind of power creep (which some people will like and some people will dislike)

#42

sexwithgiraffes

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it's also a way to sustainably reward players that are not good, else they would just get shit on most games. it's very obvious riot is trying to avoid what happens in faceit for example where donk is just perma no1