Mastering Valorant: Tips and Tricks for Effective Practice

Looking to up your game in Valorant? Practice is key when it comes to improving your skills in this competitive first-person shooter.

From honing your aim to mastering movement and communication, this article covers everything you need to know about how to practice effectively in Valorant.

Whether you’re adjusting your sensitivity, practicing with bots, or participating in tournaments, we’ve got you covered.

Stay motivated, set goals, and find a supportive community as you dive into the world of Valorant practice.

What Is Valorant?

Valorant is a first-person-shooter (FPS) game involving two teams of five players: the Attackers who attempt to plant the bomb, and the Defenders who attempt to defuse it, or the Defenders who attempt to stop them from planting, either by running down the clock or killing them all, while responding to calls and trigger discipline.

Typical matches are 24 rounds, after which the teams switch sides. The first team to win 13 rounds wins the game. Rounds have a 100-second time limit.

Why Is Practice Important In Valorant?

Practice is essential in Valorant to improve and maintain one’s skills in strategies, aim, game sense, and as an opportunity to warm up before a competitive match. Those without prior experience in similar games will find especially challenging, as in-depth tutorials are limited and knowledge-networking with experienced players is vital.

The reason for this is that a professional gaming community has not yet had the time to matriculate in the way that players of older games like Counter-Strike, Team Fortress 2, or R6 Siege have. The additional aspects of practice not discussed in this piece can be found by reading the MakeBrain’s article on the importance of practice.

How To Practice Aim In Valorant?

Practice aim in Valorant through a regimen of shooting drills, aim training maps, and lasting focus exercises.

Individual practice, utilizing aim trainers like Kovaak’s FPS Aim Trainer or the Aim Lab which has many Valorant specific exercises within it, can help players improve their aim quickly. The exercises in these aim training programs slowly increase in difficulty and become more individualized as the program learns the user’s strengths and weaknesses. Try specific Valorant-centric aim maps such as Recoil Master – Spray Training by Crashtune, YPrac’s prefiring mode maps, and other maps in the Valve Steam Workshop for practicing specific parts of your aim or for specific weapons.

Another way is to engage in scrims and in-house matches. This is an opportunity to play with different players of varying skill levels and strategies, as well as being a useful way to measure progress.

It is also important to do flashing drills by yourself or with other players. When you play during a real match, getting a kill off the first flash can be the difference between winning and losing, which could have a big impact on your economy.

Adjusting Sensitivity

Adjust sensitivity by adjusting DPI, sensitivity settings in game, adjusting crosshair placement, map zoom settings, adjusting DPI and polling rate settings on your mouse, and practicing on ureka or aim lab to achieve ideal mouse movement and flicking accuracy.

These sensitivity settings can differ greatly from player to player, so tinker around until you find what works best for you, and then stick with it. There was a popular DPI movement for an eDPI setting of around 300, although eDPIs in the 190-400 range are quite common among professional players and amateurs.

Practicing With Bots

Training in Valorant with bots can be as effective as with friends, and it takes no time at all to set up. It’s advised that you train against Easy bots to practice your individual skills and improve your score in Deathmatch in Valorant. By doing so you can get comfortable with aiming which is very important, as mentioned by Reyna via an official Riot Valorant tweet. Moreover, playing against medium bots can be beneficial.

Playing Deathmatch

Practice in Valorant can be achieved through Deathmatch. Warm-up deathmatch is a mode where players practice new weapons, get used to weapons they use rarely, and prepare for actual matches quickly. Regular deathmatch is a good way to improve aim, learn to shoot accurately while moving, practice weapon recoil control, and achieve a precision kill. Because of the chaotic nature of deathmatch, it’s less about strategies and quick decision-making so it may have a lower ceiling for improvement.

Using Aim Trainers

The basic idea behind using third-party aim trainers such as KovaaK’s FPS Aim Trainer, 3D Aim Trainer, and AIM LAB is to simulate situations where only pure aiming ability is engaged. A major problem with aiming exercises in game environments is that there are too many variables. Just as it is not virtually possible to eliminate all the variables such as corner-checking speed, sensitivity, object size, distance, vertical vs horizontal vectors, sightquickness, and proper body movements for normal skill applications in pepetraining, it is not possible to do this for pure aiming practice in games as well. Aim trainers help to eliminate some of these variables, making the exercises quantifiable. Third party aim trainers all focus on hand-eye coordination, aiming, and firing/disarming targets. None of them proactively help you practice game-specific skills like peaking, corner shooting, aiming through flashes, dropshooting, etc.

How To Practice Movement In Valorant?

Movement practice in Valorant is important because skilled movement allows players to strafe and peek with greater effectiveness. Players should practice movement in Valorant by improving the following techniques:

1. Crouch and uncrouch peeking
2. Strafing left and right
3. Jiggle peeking
4. Blocking enemy bullets (Counter-strafing)
5. Shooting during movement

Counter-strafing and accuracy while moving are movement practices that help players on a fundamental level. Counter-strafing is a shooting technique in which, by rapidly and precisely strafing in one direction while staying on the move, a player immediately comes to a halt and shoots an accurate shot. Accuracy while moving is the ability to shoot while moving. This is important because Valorant heroes must move to dodge incoming bullets while simultaneously shooting their opponents.

Mastering Strafing Techniques

One of the most important skills to practice in Valorant is mastering strafing techniques. Strafing refers to the rapid sideways movements that a player makes during a gunfight in order to dodge bullets while maintaining accuracy. The two types of strafing most commonly used are counter-strafing and accelerated strafing.

Counter-strafing is stopping a previous movement in one direction by tapping the opposite movement key to turn that direction. Accelerated strafing involves using the movement keys with the mouse movement during the gunfight to throw off the aim of opponents. Both types of strafing are shown here in this PRACTICE MAPS – VALORANT AIM LAB video by youtube channel TheKidsStar. Waduheck and Slick guess at their scores at the very end.

Learning Map Layouts

Map layouts in Valorant encompass a building’s internal layout, possible entry points, and open areas for defending and planting the spike (objective). Knowledge of each map layout is necessary for those who wish to excel in Valorant. Weaknesses exploitable by enemy agents may be impossible to avoid without understanding where these weak points are on the map and the routes by which they and their enemies approach and defend these points.

The four maps in Valorant are Breeze, Haven, Icebox, Bind, and Split. Each of these has its own quirks and proper strategies. The Callouts Map by Valorant maps provides an easy way to pick up map schematics and callouts (verbal announcements) necessary to give teammates advance notice on enemy positions or direction.

Utilizing Agent Abilities

Practice in Valorant is best done by utilizing agent abilities. The principle is simple – you cannot increase your skill in using an agent’s abilities without repeated practice using the agent’s abilities. To practice effectively without annoying teammates, you can use your abilities as much as possible to develop muscle memory in aim training maps and spike defuse or spike planting scenarios. Valorant abilities are a form of utility, so using them effectively means learning their proper utility combinations.

For example, a team may use Viper’s toxic screen to split the map, allowing Viper to play on one side and her teammates to play with an angle advantage right alongside the toxic screen. Repeated practices of using Agent abilities on Valorant Range maps will allow you to learn the equipment curve and build off this base in real matches.

How To Practice Communication In Valorant?

Communications in Valorant include voice and chat messages, tagging enemies, and mark locations. The following is how players can improve communication in Valorant:

1. Speaking calmly and moderately. Opt for calmness when speaking while spiels enthusiasm and aggressiveness should be reflected. Don’t read out every word you hear. Only summarizing what you hear to instead of repeating out loud what you heard. Always use others’ directions to the advantage of your team including if you don’t plan to heed them (fake comms).
2. Communicate Efficiently. Keep it to less than 30 seconds to avoid ‘keyboard warriors’ (people who are only talkative in games so they can yell at others to cover their own underperformance). Communicate expectations with teammates. Assume your team has no idea what you’re doing. Make sure to tell them where to move and where to look.
3. Match up with Players Outside your Discord Group. Communicate with all kinds of teammates over voice or chat.

Understanding Callouts

When learning how to play Valorant, it is important to keep an eye on the minimap and understand callouts. These are one-word descriptive markers that your team can use to notify opponents of enemy locations. If you call that an opponent is at the ramp, fellow teammates will overlook the minimap, assume ramp, and glance in that direction. Utilizing callouts correctly can assist in providing precise communication that will dictate the play style of your teammates.

Learn from the conversations of pro players about where they place themselves or where foes are located in various scenarios. Likelihood is, players will take the route they are talking about if they call it out. Remember that callouts may differ slightly depending on the team you’re playing with. My callouts may not match yours, so it’s a good idea to regularly review callout maps for Brightness and Ascent.

Practicing Communication Drills

Communication is key in Valorant based on the utility system, agent abilities, team composition, learning the map, and enemy positioning. Communication drills for Valorant can include two methods: in-game and out-of-game. The best way to practice communication in Valorant is to regularly scrim or play ranked games and concentrate on shot calling and crosshair placement calls.

A good out-of-game communication habit is to hop into a custom game and call crosshair placement angles to your teammates.

Playing With A Team

The third way to practice in Valorant is by playing with a team. While solo queuing can be good for improving individial skills, working within a team will strengthen how an individual applies skills which are useful for Valorant Ranked Matchmaking and beyond.

This style of practice uses all the same tactics and techniques as solo queuing and EnVy Us Valorant MVP player,

Victor “Vips” Serran explains the focus on teamwork, understanding each other, and playing off one another’s strengths and weaknesses should be the main goal of forming a team. Although difficult to find a full team, Vips recommends starting with two other players who you enjoy playing with and whose strengths complement your own.

For tips in Valorant ranked matches, popular mapper, Fodder, recommends learning who does what and what should you do on your Valorant team. (What to do in each role in VALORANT? 12:49 onwards). In the same video, Fodder explains that a player’s defensive behavior (zoning enemy players, creating space for teammates) and choosing the right agent to support teammates are essential in gaining an upper hand over enemies using Valorant Practice Bots.

Further Proof of Valorant Team Practice effectiveness comes from the Gambit Esports Team. They have won a total of FIVE of their five appearances while taking on the VCT Champions tours. Valorant team-radar channels on social media web or chat platforms can provide assistance in understanding how to master team-play communication

What Are The Best Ways To Practice In Valorant?

The best ways to practice in Valorant are aim trainers, bots, custom games, range training, and team deathmatch. These can be used to develop your basic skills and learn the layout of each map with different agents. Here are the best ways to practice in Valorant after you have honed your basic skills – watching gameplay recordings, reading the official Valorant website, mastering unique characters, exploring new areas after warm-ups, and playing competitive games.

Creating A Practice Routine

Creating a practice routine in Valorant involves breaking down the process of learning and honing broad goals into specific exercises that can be practiced multiple times, whether before entering matches or for extended periods in the days leading up to a tournament.

To practice in Valorant, players should create a practice plan that adds up to at least two hours per day, according to complexity requirements specific to cases. This period should include time played in all modes of map rotation, time spent in Valorant game sense training such as Advanced AIM training, learning spray patterns, communication, and understanding the metagame.

After acquiring the resources for their practice, players can utilize the logs in the shooting range and advance to AI aim trainers. Valorant itself provides different modes tailored towards practice, and the player community has expanded this through artificial means as well. In addition, players at a more advanced level can utilize the replay feature and VOD demo reviewing in order to analyze their performance and gain insights on how to improve their game. The Valorant Competitive Box of Custom Matches should be utilized by advanced players to apply their practice skills in a realistic setting.

Analyzing Gameplay And Mistakes

Analyzing gameplay and mistakes means that you need to record your games and watch them again. Most online games, Valorant included, can record a minimum of 20-40 recent games. Players can access these files through the game, or find old game files in your computer’s storage under the riot gamesvalorantlivereplays folder. If you do not have this folder, you have uninstalled the game with the option to remove game files, and you will have to start recording games now to be able to analyze later.

Trigger discipline, crosshair positioning, or what you did during a certain moment in the game – answers to all these questions can be found in replays. Every time you find an aspect of your game lacking, record it and watch it again. Experts recommend after dying or taking some timeout in-game, players should take a moment to think about what led to that death, articulating mistakes in that time frame during rounds. Try to identify errors that led up to a death. The more you are aware of your mistakes, the fewer mistakes you will make in the future and the better you will play.

Participating In Tournaments And Scrims

Once you have improved your skills in Valorant and are feeling more confident, you can up your playtime by participating in tournaments and scrims. External sites such as the Sahara Esports and FACEIT (Federation of Limbless Association Celebrity International Tip) websites and even the GameTV Discord channel provide users with tournaments and scrims in which to practice.

How To Stay Motivated While Practicing In Valorant?

Stay motivated while practicing in Valorant by acknowledging and embracing the fact that these are your weaknesses and focusing your practice to address these areas. Do a self-assessment where you identify what your strengths and weaknesses are within the game. Ask yourself the following questions to help you identify how good you are at each area of the game.

Using the information you learn during this self-assessment, design your practice routines or schedule to spend more time in the areas where you can see that you need to improve. Doing so is likely to yield quick results that will provide the needed motivation to continue practicing and improving.

It can be easy to be discouraged when you are not seeing improvement and to gravitate back towards working on aspects of the game that you are already good at. You can prevent this by constantly refining your self-assessment and changing your training programs based on the conclusions you reach. This is easiest to do by recording and regularly reviewing your performance using third-party apps. Focusing on the most productive practices and then modifying them downwards as they yield results is the best way to stay motivated while practicing Valorant.

Setting Goals

Setting goals is a key part of practicing in Valorant. Goals should be specific targets that can be measured so players are able to track improvements to their game. You can set both broad goals such as ‘do better in future matches’ or miniature goals such as how long you can stay alive before dying each round. Every goal should include Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-bound criteria. Sufficient time should be given for the goal to be achieved, and without a clear expiration date, players often lose motivation.

Goals should push you without being impossible to achieve. Goals to set for improving Valorant play include objective, performance, and process-oriented goals. Objective goals should focus on final results such as the score of a match, wins, kills, or personal performance statistics. Performance goals should focus on the level of achievement reached in the game and the number of errors made.

One of the biggest problems is deciding which characteristics you want to work on. Cognitive, emotional, teamwork, environmental awareness, zoning, aiming, communication, etc. To help decide, you can take notes of why you died in different situations and this can help find openings for improvement. Process goals should focus on specific exercises for areas of a player’s game that can be strengthened. For instance, a player who frequently misses shots can set a goal to spend an extra 5-10 minutes per day in practice mode working on their aim.

Taking Breaks

Valorant is a high-intensity game that demands focus for a long time, which along with a competitive mindset fosters toxicity. The stronger the competition and the longer you play the game, the more likely you are to get toxic. To avoid this TA toxicity, a player should take short breaks of one or two games every hour or if they feel themselves getting angry. Positive practice environments support physical and mental well-being.

Finding A Supportive Community

One of the best ways to actively practice in Valorant outside of the game is to use communities to improve your gameplay. These communities can act as a support system for new players by helping them find teammates for practice and training inside the game as well as point them towards resources such as pro Valorant players or guides on individual agents. Whether it is through Reddit, Discord, Facebook, or specialized Valorant websites, there are a number of online Valorant communities that players can use to find teams to play with, grow their social network in the game, and help them to improve their gameplay and skills. Some of the various sub-communities that players can utilize to raise their skill level in Valorant are highlighted below.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I practice my aim in Valorant?
To practice your aim in Valorant, you can use the in-game shooting range or download aim training software to practice your precision and reaction time.

How can I improve my map knowledge in Valorant?
To improve your map knowledge in Valorant, you can watch map guides and tutorials on YouTube, play custom games with friends to explore the different areas of the map, and actively communicate with your team during matches to learn about different strategies.

Is it important to practice with different weapons in Valorant?
Yes, it is important to practice with different weapons in Valorant as each weapon has its own unique strengths and weaknesses. By practicing with different weapons, you can become more versatile and adaptable in different situations.

What are some effective ways to practice my movement in Valorant?
To practice your movement in Valorant, you can use the in-game parkour mode, watch tutorials on movement mechanics, and play custom games with friends to practice strafing and peeking techniques.

How can I improve my game sense in Valorant?
To improve your game sense in Valorant, you can watch professional players’ streams and analyze their decision-making, play scrims or competitive matches, and actively communicate with your team to understand and adapt to the flow of the game.

Are there any specific drills or exercises that can help me practice in Valorant?
Yes, there are various drills and exercises that can help you practice in Valorant, such as aim training, movement drills, and map knowledge drills. You can also create your own custom games with specific settings to target and improve certain areas of your gameplay.