One gun dominated VALORANT pro play at VCT Tokyo
VCT Masters Tokyo is done and dusted, aa the analytical insights provide an interesting picture of balance and pro player preference.
27th Jun 2023 17:20
Riot Games
One gun dominated VALORANT pro play at VCT Tokyo
VCT Masters Tokyo is done and dusted, aa the analytical insights provide an interesting picture of balance and pro player preference.
27th Jun 2023 17:20
Riot Games
One of the biggest international VALORANT events of the year is VCT Masters Tokyo, and now that it has concluded, the event's analysis is bringing more clarity about the meta and balance state of Riot's first FPS title.
On top of questions about the viability of Agents, the debate on weapon strength and balance has once again shifted.
Stats don’t lie, they suggest
It's a question almost as old as esports itself: "AK or M4?" Initially posed by the spiritual predecessor of VALORANT, the OG FPS esports Counter-Strike (CS), the choice of one's main rifle is a polarising one.
While in CS, the rifle was still bound to the attacker and defender sides, VALORANT had gotten rid of these limitations and whether you'd roll out with a Vandal (AK equivalent) or a Phantom (M4) has become a matter of personal belief.
Since the inception of the VALORANT pro scene, there has been a push and pull between the two weapons, with the one-tapping Vandal dominating the spraying Phantom.
According to VALORANT analytics website rib.gg, the Vandal had been picked 58% of the time, while the Phantom made up 42% at Masters Tokyo 2023.
Last year at VALORANT Champions 2022, the Vandal was the clear weapon of choice, with it being picked 75% of the time. Since then, the weapon has lost popularity steadily and was already down to 61% at LOCK//IN.
Operator goes Kang
An almost unbelievable stat comes at the hand of the game's most expensive sniper rifle, the Operator.
While the second and third-placed players in Ardis "ardiis" Svarenieks and Kelden "Boostio" Pupello have 30 and 29 kills, respectively, with the weapon, EDG's Zheng "ZmjjKK" Yongkang had an incredible count of 103 frags on the weapon.
The gap is especially incredible, especially considering ZmjjKK played fewer matches than either of the two competitors due to EDG dropping out of the bracket one or two rounds earlier. With his audacious performances, ZmjjKK has taken over the hearts of VALORANT fans all around the globe by storm.
More international competition is approaching rapidly, with the esport's annual pinnacle event, VCT Champions set to start on August 6, 2023. The Chinese teams have yet to play through their qualifier, and therefore, ZmjjKK's EDG has yet to qualify for the event, though they are favourites to go through.
About The Author
Sascha Heinisch
Sascha "Yiska" Heinisch is a Senior Esports Journalist at GGRecon. He's been creating content in esports for over 10 years, starting with Warcraft 3.
