Valorant guide – more advanced gameplay tips and tricks

Now that Competitive Matchmaking has arrived in Valorant, things are getting a little more serious. So, you’re going to need to be armed with some more detailed info if you want to climb the ranks. This Valorant guide has some more advanced tips than our previous gameplay guides, but you can apply them all to your game right now, regardless of your skill level.

Valorant Spike details

Rounds are often won and lost in fast-paced battles around the Spike, where you need to be able to make split-second decisions. So, learn these Valorant Spike details now and you’ll be able to get the job done in the heat of the moment.

You need four seconds to plant the spike and seven seconds to defuse it. If you don’t have enough time to plant, hide. If you don’t have enough time to defuse, run. When you can hear the Spike beeping eight times per second (basically, really fast), you have less than five seconds left to defuse it. The bright white ring around the Spike also lets you know when you have less than five seconds left.

If that inner white circle has popped and you haven’t started defusing, you don’t have enough time.

You should always plant the Spike because it gives you extra Creds for the next round. Most people know this. But here’s a Valorant advanced tip: Even if you’ve already won the round and your teammates are all praising each other’s incredible skill, you should still plant the Spike. You will still get the extra Creds in the next round.

The distance you want to be from the Spike when it explodes is the same size as your audio ring on the minimap.

Look at the ring around your player on the minimap while running from the Spike explosion.

It’s not over until it’s over

When you are killed, you still have one last thing to do. You need to relay the information on your Combat Report. Tell your team how much damage you did to each enemy agent and, it should go without saying, where the enemies who killed you are. If you can manage it, also tell them what guns your enemies were using and if they used any abilities. Every bit of intel helps.

Learn to quickly and concisely deliver Combat Report info.

Just because a round is won or lost doesn’t mean it’s over. Use the few seconds you have before the round ends to pick up a better weapon for yourself or an ally. Always prioritize the Operator because it is the most expensive gun in the game – even if that means you drop your Phantom or Vandal.

You don’t have to fight to the death every round. If a round is clearly lost, it might be better to hide from your enemies and save your weapon, armor, and abilities. A Phantom, heavy armor, and a couple of abilities can cost around 4,200 Creds. That’s a lot of money to throw away for a lost cause.

Know when to rotate. Don’t continue to hold an angle when all signs point to the enemy team pushing a different bomb site. Get your knife out and run. If the push turns out to be a fake, your team can coordinate to retake the bomb site.

Rules of engagement

You’re perfectly accurate on ropes. Plus, you ride them silently and can stop wherever you’d like. Although it does expose your head first, peeking on ropes can be an excellent way to catch your enemies by surprise.

If you walk while trying to peek enemies, they will see you coming, and you will likely lose the duel. However, the first few steps you take while running in Valorant are silent. So, walk silently to the angle you want to peek, and when you’re a couple of steps away, stop walking and peek the corner with speed. You will remain silent, not giving away your position if the enemy isn’t around the corner but also giving yourself a better chance of killing them if they are.

Different guns are good in different scenarios. If you’re going to be walking down a long corridor, you don’t want a shotgun or SMG. Conversely, if you’re pushing into a small room, you don’t want a sniper rifle. With that in mind, choose the gun that is going to suit your team’s plan for the round. Use shotguns on eco rounds if you plan to fight in close quarters. Don’t always buy the Phantom because it is the best rifle overall. If you’re going to be fighting closer to your enemies, the Vandal actually does more damage.

You can cast abilities and throw weapons through teleporters. You don’t often get to take advantage of this, but it’s good to know if you have an enemy pinned down inside a teleporter.

I hope you gained some valuable knowledge from this Valorant guide and you can take these advanced tips and use them in your matches. You can check out our agent-specific guides and learn more gameplay tips through our Valorant guides and features hub.