The VALORANT devs over at Riot Games provided fans with some information today regarding the next agent set to join the game’s roster—and it sounds like the meta could be taken over by a “lethal” sentinel agent once again.
In a preview post regarding the rest of VALORANT’s 2023 plans, the developers finally let some details slip about the new agent, promising that the first of two new agents planned for release this year will be a sentinel—one who “will stop you dead in your tracks and pull you in for a closer look.” Additionally, a duelist is set to be added afterward, later this year.
The mention of a lethal sentinel who can stop agents “dead in [their] tracks” immediately invokes thoughts of Chamber, the deadly sentinel agent who became the prominent fixture of any professional or highly ranked competitive map composition before his nerfs. Chamber was the focal point of the meta in 2022, with virtually every pro team assigning him to their best mechanical player, before massive nerfs in December reduced the viability of his entire ability kit.
Riot likely isn’t trying to replace Chamber, nor create an agent that is as overpowered as pre-nerf Chamber was. We know very little about this upcoming agent other than what we can speculate on from a single teaser image from the preview post, which shows the agent taking apart and tinkering with a gadget that is surely a part of their ability kit in some regard on a workshop table.
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An ability kit that stops players and pulls them in for a closer look may actually seem more reminiscent of Cypher than Chamber. Perhaps by stopping players in their tracks, the kit will involve detaining enemy players for a short time, with “a closer look” providing tactical information like enemy ability cooldown timers. Maybe “a closer look” even involves physically pulling the enemy closer.
With VALORANT Episode Seven set to start later in June, players should expect to see and hear more about the new agent relatively soon.
