Hero image: VALORANT Patch 13.06 key art. Image: Riot Games
Australian and New Zealand players can now play VALORANT on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. It arrived with Patch 13.06, which also adds a new rifle, a new score and a way to warm up while you queue.
Console players, this one is yours, because Riot’s Patch 13.06 notes confirm that VALORANT Console “is now available in Australia and New Zealand”. Riot’s console page lists PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, and it is free to play.
You are also arriving in the middle of a big update. Riot calls 13.06 “our biggest patch of the year”, and it changes a lot of what you see before and after a match.
Start with the Warden, a new automatic rifle in the 2900 credits tier next to the Vandal and Phantom. It has a 2x scope, 18 bullets per magazine and 50 damage per bullet at all ranges, with 200 for a headshot and 42 for a leg shot. Riot describes it as “a distinct long-range option”, so buy it for the long angles.
Next, watch your scoreboard, because Average Combat Score is gone. Performance Score replaces it, a number from 0 to 500 that Riot says measures more than damage and kills. It now decides your MVP and scoreboard position in Competitive, Unrated, Swiftplay and Premier.
You can also enter the Range while you are in queue, so warm up while you wait. It does not work for Premier, Deathmatch or other modes without Agent Select. There is one console known issue: mode selection can misbehave when you are in the Range in queue.
Want something lighter? Gauntlet: Glitched is the new limited-time mode, where sixteen players enter as eight duos and fight 2v2 rounds, drafting abilities from different Agents between rounds. Retake is heading out.
Agent Mastery went live in the same patch, so every Agent now has its own Act levels and Lifetime levels, and every player, console players included, started both at zero.
Riot also reports progress on smurfs and boosters, and says its boosting detection has banned 1600 accounts per day, which is “over 90,000 accounts, since July 20”.
Grab a controller, run the Range while you queue and try the Warden before you lock it in for ranked.
Source: Riot Games – VALORANT Patch Notes 13.06, Riot Games – VALORANT Console