VCT Masters Berlin is all said and done, offering some upsets and the first international VALORANT title for EMEA. But despite all the surprises, one thing is for certain—Jett is dominant.
Sentinels IGL Shahzeb “ShahZaM” Khan, who pulled out Jett seven times in Berlin, discussed the knife-wielding agent during his Twitch broadcast yesterday. And while her 85-percent pick rate at the international tournament, according to VLR.gg, is an issue, ShahZaM believes the main problem is that the Operator is “only viable on Jett.”
“It’s too clunky to use on any other agent,” ShahZaM said. “And the problem is that there’s not a lot of counter options to the Op. Now if you could use the Op on other agents, you can counter a Jett just walking up with an Op or a Jett just taking a duel or dry peek.”
The pro admits that Jett should still be nerfed. But he feels tweaks should still be made to the sniper to offer more counterplay.
The Operator was heavily nerfed in Patch 1.09, with the sniper’s scoped movement speed, fire rate, equip time, and deadzone each getting targeted. And while the gun’s price was dropped to 4,700 credits in Episode Three, it’s still a clunky weapon to use.
Jett’s incredible mobility gives her the ability to take a shot and immediately dash away, making up for some of the Operator’s bigger weaknesses. Since no other agent has that luxury, it’s most common to see Jett players purchase the sniper. And her dominant presence in pro play further showcases that changes need to be made.
Riot may consider reverting some of the Operator nerfs from Episode One. This might encourage other agents to pick up the sniper, though Jett would still be the preferred option. As for how they can balance Jett, the devs can limit her dash uses and potentially take away one of her smokes. This would make dry peeking with the Op a riskier and more expensive strat.
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