The competitive VALORANT scene is finally heating up with the start of various tournaments around the world, but some players and fans have voiced their complaints around the rise of a certain sub-machine gun that has taken over as a deadly eco-round solution.
Effectively known as the Stinger meta, the weapon rose to popularity following Patch 5.06 after developers buffed the weapon by lowering its firing error rate for both its primary and secondary fire. It helped Stinger users control its recoil much more easily than before, while still remaining one of the most effective weapons to buy thanks to its low price point.
In response, Riot will be making some significant changes to the weapon’s price, along with its damage fall-off at specific distances. “We feel the Stinger is over-performing at its price point, especially in the early rounds, and lacks the right economic tradeoffs,” Riot said on social media.
Related: Why are pro VALORANT players using the Stinger so much?
The popular SMG is getting its price raised from 950 credits to 1100, which should make it a harder hit on a team’s economy if they happen to fail a round. The weapon’s damage will also fall off at a shorter distance, with the gun dealing 27 damage per bullet from 0-15 meters and falling to 23 damage per bullet beyond that distance.
Overall, the Stinger will be less effective in multiple instances, which should lead to a decrease in its usage in both professional play and solo queue alike. Currently, the Stinger has been the third-most equipped weapon in the 2023 VCT North American Challengers, right behind the Vandal and Phantom, according to VALORANT stats aggregate THESPIKE.gg.
These changes will be heading to live servers in a few days when Patch 6.02 drops on Tuesday, Feb. 7.
