The Secret Rise of Valorant's Most Game-Defining Agent
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- čas přidán 11. 05. 2022
- Sova has been a pillar of Valorant’s meta since day one.
He was essential for gathering info in the early days of the game's pro play.
Players have pushed the boundaries of what is and isn’t possible with Sova - but even after the pros mastered the ins and outs of playing against him, he never stopped being meta.
And despite flying under the radar as one of Valorant’s most broken agents, eventually, players started to realize that Sova was simply too strong.
Written by: Niall McCrossan (@niallmccrossan)
Edited by: Jason Durante (@JayJay_Durante)
Production Assistance: Jason Lo (@JasonLobsterr)
Thumbnail by: Brandon Mistele
Hosted by: Daniel Rosen (@Daniel_Rosen)
Produced by: Alina Sotula (@ASotula) and Daniel Rosen (@Daniel_Rosen)
Music used under license from Associated Production Music LLC (”APM”).
Footage credits: pastebin.com/kuyMg46e
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Sova clutches and plays are the best to watch n execute in my opinion. Initiators are so fun!
Sova's kinda fun tbh 👀
You late bruh
You late bruh
You late
late
Average Jonas comment with 9 likes???
Sova was OP but Astra was the real broken agent to the point pros wanted her deleted.
A well coordinated astra is much worse to play than a well coordinated sova
Used to be so fun when astra is broken
@@lunar2283 astra was hard asf to master
And it needed to be rewarding for someone who took the time to master it
But now she's almost deleted from the game
Imagine learning the hardest agent in the game but not getting any value out of it cause it's nerfed
@@aaaaaa-hh8cq SugarZ3ro can still utilize it to the whole though. But it's comp scene so uncomparable with the casuals.
@@menaceusilent yeaa but in low elo player pov after u learn playing her she becomes more smooth and flexible to use but after the nerfs she became sophisticated and need to think so much when u use abilties when playing without coord
@@menaceusilent yea but her cooldown increase AND 1 star removal was too much
As someone who use to main sova. I can see how he can be broken in pro and high elo. As a diamond player he can be pretty strong in the right hands. However. I feel like the drone was all the needed nerfs. Most of the time the dart is shot in high elo and the shock dart needs hours of practice and save conditions to execute. The nerf they gave the shock darts seemed kinda of mediocre as what they really need to do os make an agent that is as useful at info as he is so he isnt picked as much
problem is if you do that then u can just run sova + that new agent and you have basically infinite info
Nah it was overpowered the nerf was justified
@@aaaaaa-hh8cq I'm a sova main and since the nerf i have played atleast a solid 15-20 sova games MINIMUM and i got 3 shock dart kills, I'll explain it better for you, OUT OF MORE THAN 200 ROUNDS 3 SHOCK DARTS KILLED, 90 to 75 was too much, they should make it 80
@@aaaaaa-hh8cq the drone yes, the shocks no
@@Robert-el6sl no lmao, Fade isn't that good, only great map for her is split and bind. Where sova isnt played
Sova was the first agent I stuck to using and was a major contributor in helping me get better game sense of the different maps of Valorant. He’s still my go-to initiator even with the nerfs
Yah it was my first agent that I played with in valorant and after all the nerfs I still main him he is the best and will remain...
I think average jonas heavily played a part in increasing sovas popularity
The way in which he began to experiment with Sova truly showed how interesting it was to use him.
So true
And sinatraa tbh
Word
Sova has the highest skill ceiling in the valorant,i remember started playing sova and viper at beginning but then i moved to Jett/chamber/ Reyna but sova is just soo good that it requires you to use your brain while playing sova
I'm surprised Fade was never mentioned here and how her presence may affect Sova's meta
Shes not been played in pro play yet so there's not much to really say
let her get settled into the competitive scene first before she gets used in pro play
Sova is not going anywhere, in any case we're going to see Sova and Fade in the same team
@@Lynch2507 that was the case because the pro matches were played in an older version but fade got played in a vct match in the last couple says
Shes only gonna be played in 2 or 3 maps
2 of which where Sova doesnt get much play AT ALL.
Breeze or Ascent is the only map I can see her contest sova in but why remove Sova when you have so much strats around him
Coming from Rainbow Six Siege, i knew instantly how impactful Sova was going to be. The biggest weapon you can have is always information
It is really interesting to see the evolution of Valorant, how it incorporates the information seeking of R6S with the map/vision control of LoL and makes it fun to play, hope things keep being this interesting in this game.
Cypher too in the early days
Same, that's why i love initiators.
However, i had a hard time to adapt to the recoil and the "simpler" maps of Valorant.
@@TheRatedOniChannel and the gunplay of csgo
The easiest Champ to learn, the hardest one to Master
I’d argue Phoenix is easier.
How is he the easiest to learn? To get any kind of use from his ability you need to know at least a few lineups. Someone like Sage or Brimstone would be the easiest to learn.
@@bantxc5616 Nahhh, you dont need good aim to be good on Sova
@@carlosanthony4972 there is no skill behind line ups
@@carlosanthony4972 sova is the only agent the game teaches you how to play
What about changing his ping into the cypher static ping? So you don't get these movement tracking ping. You still know exactly where they are but it would me harder to do a follow up wallbang.
I'd want the opposite actually, make the cypher ping like sova's. Makes the camera much more useful to teammates.
I would like this change but i think in pro scene this will delete sova as a agent
I think the shock dart nerfs were unnecessary but the drone definitely needed toning down.
As a newbie i enjoyed playing Sova, his ability makes fighting easier when you know where to expect the enemy to come attacking...
POGGERS! SARAH AND BRANDON THE GOATS
STOPPPP HAHAHAHAHHAHAH ♥
APPLES AND FROSTY!!!! YOU GUYS ARE SO COOL
0:08 APPLES AND FROSTY ARE THE GOATS
0:15!!!!
2:06 glad I wasn't the only person who fucked around with the sounds that sovas signature makes
Another upload to bless my day 🙇♀️
Keep em videos coming ✌
Initiators are the "Mr. Turning The Table" for Valorant. This makes Valorant really thrilling to watch as situations can change in a sec.
It's incredible how good Hiko looks now, props to him. He lost a lot of weight and looks better than ever!
Don't be fat phobic
He looks good as good as he's now😑
@@peschannel9815 thats not being fat phobic you dunce
@@peschannel9815 how tf is that fat phobic, OP isn't hating on how hiko used to look, they're praising hiko's present day self that's more fit than before
@@peschannel9815 wtf do you mean "Don't be fat phobic?"
Is praising someone for getting healthier an offense now?
what's next? gonna call someone with prosthetic leg an Ableism?"
@@zeddexel Being fit is fat phobic too
You start to hate obese and old people and feel superior than them
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think 100T used to run a triple initiator comp (Sova, KAY/O, Skye), it basically cover all the things you might need at an execute/retake (Flashes, Supression, Heal and Info)
Yeppers. But also with doing that you’re kinda limited to picking a duelist or sentinel or sentinel and controller. Makes other picks kinda hard
What a weird video in some ways. "Sova players doing the same thing round after round makes the game boring" thats literally any agent. Metas get figured out and people flock to setups they think are strong. Imagine trying to convince me a Brim smoke or a sage wall placements are somehow fresh game to game. Sova is one of the only agents that actually has options for using his abilities that arent painfully simple/samey in the cast due to cross map lineups and shock dart bounces.
Theres definitely things you could say like:
Hes uniquely strong in the role
Other agents dont have comparative info gathering
His kit can make situations oppressive
Trying to say hes uniquely boring/samey is ludicrous, youd have to condemn the entire game
I have to agree with you in this one. Well said
Yeah well said. This video has a bit of a bad take tbh.
I think you misunderstood he’s talking about from watching pro perspective on how much he was used. You don’t see a sage every game but you did see a sova every pro match ever
Recently in pro plays, I'd say Kayo definitely takes the spot for secondary initiator / secondary entry fragger. His kits are so good and complements Sova who is essentially a scout, and Kayo could be the battering ram into the site, especially with his ultimate.
The new Kay/o meta actually makes the game fun to watch again. Lile back in Champions 2021 when Acend Zeek popping flash left and right to steamroll their opponent.
brimstone’s the best cus his muscles actually carry entire teams. Also a sick coach.
Hel sewer
'Thats why they put him in charge'
@@nandh2455 That Brimstone over there is a stubborn ass. Reminds me of someone
i feel like he would probably be the hardest to nerf since there is only one thing that can change about his darts, shock dart damage and scan range, changing the speed and weight of the dart will destroy him for like 2 weeks before new lineups are created
Yea I think that the best thing to do for them would be to make other agents that can gather info in different ways. The reason (I think) he is picked so often is because he is the best at getherong info. If they release another agent that can gather info we'll but also do other things (like omen who plays the role of a smoker but can be played in other ways), pick rates would be less stale for sova
Maybe
Sova is hard to play, but if you put time into him he is Amazing, the problem is still that only like 2% of players invest time and all the others just stick to duelists
Sova is not only my main, but my favorite character in any Riot game and FPS. He's so wholesome!
I just picked and main sova because none of my friends or squad played the agent. When i picked him up actually a really fun agent to play ever since then been a dedicated sova main
Him: “It limited the games creativity. But that wasn’t the only problem.”
My ad: “WHY IS THAT PILLOW SQUARE?”
As someone who used to play a lot of R6 Sova reminds me a lot of Lion: I remember watching pro-play the patch Lion was allowed into it and by it was the weirdest thing to watch; Lion would drone out the cap, forcing all defending operators to stay put less they wanted to be spotted. However the active was so long that Defenders had no choice but to run get spotted from 5 rooms away and try and retake the site. aaaaaaaaaand then they nerfed him so badly that he's just about average.
Coming from games like csgo and overwatch i knew that i wanted to play sova. Sure damaging abilities are good and all but in the end if you got no info you will always be shooting blindly.
His darts were opressive in such a way that can drive out an oper from their nest while showing to the entire team where that nest is. Darts that when used properly make you feel that they have a homing function. A drone that can be used to gain info while being away from danger. And an ult that can reveal enemies hit making almost impossible for them to escape a second shot.
His kit revolves around him making plays while being safe from harm. Being able to clear an entire sits or defend it without the need of even sticking out his head to peek.
“With a reveal… THE WALL BANG!!!” Never gets old lol
Great video and topic :)
I wish sova's shock was changed to 80 instead of 75 n sova drone being 8s instead of 7s
What bro he's already good why do you want him buffed
@@TitaniumFlanks They recently nerfed him pretty hard. He's still usable but they definitely went a bit too hard, with the drone becoming basically useless especially at high level play and double shock darts and a lot of lineups just getting fucked because there is so much less leeway to get a kill using them.
These changes also came with Riot not so subtly changing Sova's bow animation to cover a portion of the HUD people used for lineups. Which would have literally just made useless hundreds of hours of learning the agent. And though they reversed that pretty quickly with fan backlash it still left people critical of the nerfs.
"This sneeze needs to pay rent its hanging out" LMAO
The old thumbnail looked like sova had a handlebar moustache
Sova is so interesting that play, people cringe at line ups but it just makes play interested and fun, he really is the best agent when it comes to gather info and making plays.
Why is it a secret rise? In any FPS game whether it be a tactical shooter or a BR, INFO is king.
No matter how many nerfs Sova gets, as long as his E (3rd skill) aka Recon Arrow has the same effect, it will be infinitely useful in all sorts of situations in Valorant.
Hes the definition of high skill high reward, you deadass can stand anywhere on the map and give info/deal dmg to anywhere on the map
It hasnt to be this way to nerf sova's shock dart actually, they could just bring a new agent to neutralise his dart
"And he's almost replaced now "
Thats why we call them sova players, not initiators. Big respect for sova mains, i think the last nerf on the drone should be enough, i remember in acent where you can drone to boat house from main, and that was bs.
"Beaten only by Omen"
Ohh how they massacred my boy
Well at least he is relevant again after Astra and Viper nerfs
nerfing the drone huh... until this day i still haven't figure out how to use his drone to tag ppl.
Even after the nerf, the existance of Fade. Sova is still my no 1 main 💪🏻
Best example would be how braveaf changed up fnc when he was in the team.
Line up gods are scary
11:47
Astra: am i a joke to you?
bring back up the damage of the shock darts
"I am the hunter!"
You guys are gonna have fun with this drama between s1mple and thorin
11:36 Agents for spotting enemies will always be powerful on high level play.
Or the agents will be totally trash in the lower ranks...
Ubi this is how u balanced ur character dont nerf it to the ground make it all has something strong that make u say " ok i will play this agent because of.... " , i play r6 for 3 years ( not really long time but ive seen enough ) The zofia nerf thats hits me hard tbh , the sledge nerf , and many buff that not really necessery and now LMG meta that everybody swinging with LMG .
2:07 relatable! ive done this the first time i played valo! 🤣
What headset is average jonas wearing in that interview? The white one with black tips
Nothing is broken, if everything is broken
Omen chilling at 90+ 😂
It is funny that everyone pronounces his name emphasising the wrong letter. But it would be cool if it was made on purpose.
Thanks AverageJonas ❤️ made this agent so popular
finally some recognition to the chad
They should make it so that if you get shot by sova's drone you can remove it like when you get hit by his recon dart
I think this wil be good instead of ruin the agent for me atleast
That or they could just nerf ASol
I've seen a lot more kay/o in pro play recently. Why do you think that is? Or am I wrong here??
It's weird that half the clips showing sova kits being too strong is sova not using utility
Look If everyone is broken, no one is broken.
-A blue frog probably.
Why! You guys did same with Jett, dose it need to be Nerfed?
Valorant fans enjoyment:
*"Less bullet*
*More random shit"*
Told my friends from the beta launch that Sova might be the best agent in the game, told them information is the key to winning. Coming from Apex to Valo, I used to main Bloodhound where "wallhack" is the best ability you can have and same thing with Sova.
what? did you say operator? it should be "Agent" otherwise you will confuse non R6S
Sova is just the best agent
The thing that riot does better than most is that they actually listen to their community, their pro players and their statistics. In valorant at least.
sova takes mad skills
Fuunny how its posted after his nerf
You can never make everyone happy but I'll admit the valorant team does a really good job balancing agents so that different teams can play differently comps there is no must pick in valorant right now it's not jett it's not sova it's not kay/o and it's not raze it's not chamber and we gota be patient it takes time to buff and Nerf agents they know better than us no game should let the community decide something listening to us the only thing that's important
the only nerf you can give sova is just only make the map pool split LOL
Praising power creep and calling sova not gutted when they pretty much took away an entire playstyle
Sova is the most balance of all the agents. Sova skills are double edge swords. The only answer from this doubts is players are leveling up. Players are getting good. Especially players that abusing sova. If you saw how sinatraa play sova its different from others that uses line ups. Because he play sova thousand of hours that it end it to the point the he just running around throwing and controlling darts and recons. Look, if you keep nerfing agents, the game will become dull. Add more agents and maps. If riot can release 25+ agents and then nerfs and balancing will follow. Its not the same as CS. The main target here is agents will have an enemy agent that will anti there skills. If you always nerf agents, it will become a never ending nerf. Look at how they've done from jett. It still broken asf. I hope, i made a valid point from the game.
The shock darts nerf tho :'(
Who the woman who does the match commentary? She’s damn good... When she goes to a whisper in tense moments...
His ult is the only thing broken. People can just change dpi and the slow charge up does not exist.
I have never watched pro Valorant and I’m wondering if they get to ban agents before the match?
No bans
banning dnst exist in this game, but in pro play u can see that pros get to ban maps
Only ban maps only
13:00 since when DougDoug started commenting on games?
Me having quad duelist comps in my ranked games
Then make it 5 duelists. You might not win, but at least you're not getting screamed at for the "wrong" smokes or not healing them when they only lost 9 hp. Four people chose not to play as a team, and they WILL blame the one who picks something useful when it doesn't work out. Don't give them the chance.
Sova just makes you play rainbow six siege for a bit
the changes to drone where good but the changes to shock darts made things way less interesting
I will happily take sova even after nerfs. He is OP. Reveal is Revel an official wall hacks
If this is a Sova content, u need Jonas himself
Coming from a Sova main
Sova’s shocks should be at 80 dmg, not 75.
Hope they revert the Shock Dart damages.
Is that Hanzo
i like apples ... oh its a shinigami play on word
"Sova might be the most broken OPERATOR" Someone's been playing Siege a lot recently lmao
sova too op hate those shock dart line up should cut some lineup
if only league balance team is that good
Breach on fracture is the most broken agent in the game
There were a lot more than 5 agents to select from on Beta. They forgot Raze and Omen.
U have to unlock them 1st tho
Omen went away for a bit because of astra in pro play but I agree with raze. when chamber came out raze started top be more prominent in pro play secretly
they were talking about agents that were unlocked by default
Sova is the best agent for me
Sova limiting creativity? That must be the greatest joke. His kit is the most interesting and creative to play with as it gets imho
This game needs a draft mode ban 1 or 2 agent per team
Also super psyched to see Omen be 95% pick rate. My boy's really balanced and just feels like home to me.
it was before he got nerfed
That was before astra came in
well he's a hunter
Sova drone and reckon are most
for the team, the only skill kind of individual was his shocks. Now our fun I over, I have stoped playing him and gonne by I kind of a grief. It's sad... just sad.
its just sova never been touch his kit for years until they touch it now....
other agents were nerfed thats why he's the most outstanding agent
Sova was already an s tier agent b4 the nerfs(other agents) , lmao. He was always mentioned in a and s tiers.
"But the way the Valorant balancing team so far has actually been a refreshing change of pace"
Then a chamber trip was removed