Riot will buff Valorant’s Phoenix and Cypher, per Reddit AMA

Recently, Riot Games had a few members of their team conduct an AMA on Reddit to discuss all things to do with Valorant agents and game balancing. Valorant's Character Team came together to answer many players questions, and we got some interesting insights into the future of the game and its agents.

Some of the most enlightening news from the Reddit AMA is that regarding Phoenix and Cypher. Two of the oldest Agents in the game, the pair are both admittedly much weaker than their newer counterparts. Let's be real, who even plays as Phoenix anymore?

When asked about if there were any plans to buff Phoenix, character producer John Goscicki shared that "Upfront, yes, we are working on Phoenix, but it is too early for us to talk about details of what it may entail."

Goscicki continues, "Right now, we want to take the time to explore everything between number tweaks to to something more. Unfortunately, we do not have a solid ETA on that, and we want to take the time to find the right long term place for Phoenix."

So, it sounds like we might be waiting a while before we see Phoenix receive some much needed TLC, and it appears that the same stands for Cypher.

"Cypher is in a similar situation [to Phoenix]. We aren't prepared to share details or dates, but he is definitely on our radar," says agent designer Jay Watford.

These questions come in light of the fact that Phoenix and Cypher have been somewhat replaced by the likes of fresh faces. With the introduction of Fade during Episode 4 Act 3, a Sova nerf, and an upcoming Chamber nerf, it's safe to say that the Valorant meta has truly been transformed in the past few months alone, and it hasn't settled just yet.

Phoenix and Cypher arguably have less to offer as agents than their counterparts, and players have been requesting a buff for a long time coming. So, it's probably good news to plenty of players that the agents will be receiving a buff sooner or later.

As it stands, we currently have multiple character classes in Valorant. There's Duelists, Controllers, Sentinels, and Initiators. One user asked if the character team have any plans to introduce a new class to Valorant.

"We're definitely open to finding new classes in Valorant, but we want to make sure that those classes are both healthy for the game and contribute to the tactical space in unique and meaningful ways," says Jay Watford. "If/when we find an Agent that expands what's possible and checks those boxes, we wouldn't want them to be restricted to fit into the classes that currently exist."

Jay closes by asking "What classes do you think would be interesting to explore in the game?" which led to people suggesting the likes of infiltrators or more supporting classes.

What new features would you like to see in Valorant, and how would you like to see the agents buffed or nerfed in upcoming patches?