The VCT Masters Berlin event was equally or more successful than the VCT Masters Reykjavík event from May 2021. Though the latter was the First Global Valorant Tournament and the first LAN Event, the VCT Masters Berlin event was surprising.
Ten and Sixteen pro valorant teams participated in the respective events, and they each came from different regions of the globe.
The Qualified teams from regions like NA, EMEA, BR, KR, SEA, JP, and LATAM collectively offered week-long entertaining VCT gameplay. Though no single team won both titles, the entirety of both events was a thrill to watch. Primarily because we saw global Tier-S teams compete against each other in Best of 3 and Best of 5 Match Series.
Now, if you could not enjoy all the Valorant LAN action, we’ve got you VCT Masters Roundup and some nifty VCT Gameplay tips!
VCT Masters Valorant Pro Series Roundup
From slick Jett kills or secret Cypher lurks to a series of Reyna’s kills, the VCT LAN Masters had everything and more! Both VCT Masters events succeeded in gaining viewership of more than 700,000 users on respective platforms, which amounts to more than 80 million hours!
“Valorant generated a hefty sum of income by the end of January 2021. The total exceeded the record earnings of CSGO with over 3.5 billion Valorant matches played to date.”
Amidst these figures, the VCT Berlin & VCT Reykjavík events contributed vastly to the game’s global growth. The events saw some familiar patterns while also identifying discrepancies in the agent picking rate and map selection. Let’s find out!
VCT Masters: Bind & Breach were Left Out
Statistically, from the now available 7 Valorant maps, only 6 were available for both the events. Among them, Bind was the least-picked Valorant map across the VCT Masters LAN Tournaments. Still, it’s exceedingly astonishing that teams from regions like KR, NA, EMEA, LATAM, etc., picked Split – the most hated map on Valorant.
The Split map was a close tie with the Breeze map, where we saw agents like Viper, Sova, and Skye flourish using their abilities and the aiming prowess of pro Valorant players who picked them. Still, Breach remained among the least picked agents, which seems to have catalyzed the latest changes to Valorant Agents Abilities in Patch 3.06.
VCT Gameplay Roundup: Duelists, Sentinels & Initiators FTW
All the participating teams from VCT Masters tournaments observed a maximum pick rate for Jett. Sova and Sage, on the other hand, remained second common picks across the board, followed by Omen. But, Raze, closely parallel to Omen’s pick rate, also saw teams like 100 Thieves, Envy, Faze, Guild and Immortals.
Cypher was an unusual pick for some pro Valorant Players, but Zombs, Steel, and others did justice by his role, which also helped them win decisive Clutch rounds. Not to forget Sage and Killjoy, the former had a higher pick rate across all maps, ideally due to her barrier orb, healing ability, and resurrection ultimate ability.
VCT Gameplay Roundup: Rotations
Observably, each of the participating teams did not throw regards for lurk to the wind, resulting in supreme-class entertaining VCT gameplays. Gambit emerged as a challenging contender for the VCT Berlin Tournament and proceeded to win the Series by beating Envy, the runner-up of VCT Berlin Masters.
Essentially, their success can be attributed to their highly synchronized team comms that succeeded in retaining maximum map control at most times. Gambit truly showed why it deserves respect and appreciation, whether it was mid map control, cross-rotations, or site rotations.
VCT Gameplay Roundup: Valorant Agent Abilities
It was only after the VCT Berlin Tournament that developers decided to nerf Jett, Skye, and Killjoy in some aspects. This move was long overdue, considering the heavy reliance on their ability to secure spike site areas.
Similarly, Valorant in-game economy was also nerfed after the end of the VCT Reykjavík series, which also saw teams using Valorant agent abilities unsparingly.
The star of that series was Judge, which received a severe price hike after the culmination of the tournament. Likewise, the Operator was also seen too frequently in the VCT Berlin Tournament, which farmed more than a thousand kills between all teams.
VCT Masters Gameplay Tips
The entire VCT LAN Masters Tournaments were a delight for a Valorant community comprising tens of millions of Valorant Players. From sneaky plays to hilarious knife kills and beyond all the last-minute spike detonations and diffusion, here’s all you should implement for a better K/D ratio!
VCT Gameplay: Team Communication
The participating teams from VCT Berlin, compared with VCT Reykjavík, appeared more protective of their allies and site control. Numerous plays were made that tipped the scale in favor of Valorant Attackers and Defenders. For most sites between the six maps, all of these shifting balances occurred by communicating via abilities.
From Sova to KAY/O and Brimstone to Astra, initiators and controllers were given multiple roles of defending a site to initiate the charge of the duel. Meanwhile, the Duelists were assigned to seek maximum engagement while the team zeroed on a location.
- Have multiple agents covering or securing the Mid-Map area.
- Communicating clockwork use of Valorant agent abilities with symmetric rotation.
- Baiting Opponent Team’s agent abilities well before the halftime of most rounds.
- Saving weapons but angling for last known sightings.
VCT Masters: Innovative Line-Ups
Fans of CSGO games understand the importance of line-ups, and Valorant only takes it to the next level with unique agent abilities. The VCT Gameplay featured newer line-ups for the use of lethal abilities and flashes besides unorthodox agent movements.
The Haven and Ascent maps are full of bullet penetrable areas, and the eSports VCT Masters Valorant Players scored numerous early and easy kills through these openings.
Additionally, the events saw the teams deviating from the typical spike planting locations, which aligned with unforeseen line-ups of Ultimate abilities of agents like Viper, Sova, Brimstone, Reyna, and Jett.
- Using Viper’s Pit on the bridge from the Kitchen area to B Site creates a hard to re-take plant.
- Breeze holds the highest potential for cross-the-map line-ups with Viper, Sova, Astra, KAY/O, Phoenix, and Sage.
- Icebox Site B line-ups favor Raze, Jett, and Viper, whereas Site A line-up aligns well with Sova, Omen, Sage, Killjoy, and Jett.
- Split cross-the-map line-ups can potentially eliminate the need to split agents between spike sites as a strategy.
VCT Masters: Opportunistic Ability Usage
Besides baiting valorant agent abilities, the VCT Gameplay observed Pro Valorant Players utilizing abilities at the opportune moments. From KAY/O’s suppression blade to Sova’s Hunter’s Fury to Raze’s boom bot, each was shy to show face in the early rounds.
However, Shrouded Step, Updraft, and Barrier Orbs were used merely as a utility for gaining elevation or unusual vantage points. Sky Smokes, Nebula, Guiding Light, and other LOS (Line of Sight) blocking and blinding instruments were used too unflinchingly, which will now be a matter of significance after the nerfs.
VCT Masters: Agent Selection
- The Tier S list of valorant agents still holds Jett, Sova, Sage, or Skye and Reyna as the leading agents, while Yoru was a loose pick among teams from select regions.
- Raze, Omen, Astra & Viper were ranked as Tier-A agents as team players utilized them to the maximum to harness map control instead of scoring kills.
- Brimstone, Killjoy, Cypher, KAY/O, and Phoenix were essential picks as their suite of abilities was necessary for re-takes or hard spike site push or evade situations.
VCT Tips: Do’s and Mistakes to Avoid
Seeing the class A valorant gameplay from VCT LAN Masters teams would surely catch the allure of regular Valorant players. However, while you seek to implement the positives of their VCT gameplay into your competitive and unranked game modes, be sure to avoid these pitfalls.
- Force buying can lose you rounds, and the weaker economy can affect the entire team.
- Your Classic shots still need hours of gameplay to be as near as Radiant Valorant Players.
- Strategize elaborate rotation plans during buy rounds on team comms instead of linear hits.
- Recognize when Your Valorant Agent abilities are being baited.
- Always diffuse the spike, do not regroup even after killing everyone until the next round.
- Switch your agent ability line-ups and stick to playing a few comfortable Valorant agents.
- Bulldogs are no replacement for Spectre, but Spectre fails in long distances.
- A Frenzy can be lethal on Icebox, Haven & Bind push, and Shorty for the Split re-take.
- Assign a lurk watcher, let the lurk watcher cascade rotate around the map for a big lurk.
Read More: Valorant Map Fracture: Everything You Need to Know!
The Takeaway
After the VCT Reykjavík and VCT Berlin events, the First Valorant Champions Tournament is not long away in December 2021.
Meanwhile, the Valorant community has plenty of things to look forward to in October and November. October will sport the VCT Last Chance Qualifier series between 10th and 17th across various regions, with November bringing the Episode 3 Act 3and a rumored new Valorant Agent.
The four winners from the VCT – Last Chance Qualifier series will participate with qualified teams in Berlin for the World’s First Valorant Champions Tournament.
Berlin Valorant Champions Tournament Teams
- Sentinels
- Gambit
- Ascend
- Fnatic
- Envy
- Team Vikings
- Vivo Keyd
- Vision Strikers
- Crazy Raccoon
- Team Secret
- X10 Esports
- KRU Esports
