Valorant updates come all too often. As they should. As a hyper-competitive tactical shooter, it's important to keep new content coming in, new cosmetics flowing for flair, and balance patches to ensure no single character has a strong advantage over an entire team. The Valorant 5.01 patch notes are here, and we're taking a look at when the Valorant 5.01 release date could surface as well.
Like any Valorant patch notes page, we're going to go over what we know already, what might come from the official release, and, when the time comes, list out the confirmed patch notes as soon as they drop. It's almost time for the VLS finals in Copenhagen after all, so we're expecting this one to be pretty big.
For more Valorant, check out the previous Valorant 5.0 patch notes page. Episode 5 recently kicked off, so there's still plenty of scope for new themed content to appear in the coming months. The Valorant Night Market guide is worth looking at, too.
Valorant 5.01 Patch Notes
Valorant 5.01 Patch Notes
AGENT UPDATES
Phoenix
We believe Phoenix's Curveball is the cornerstone of his kit, and as we explored adjustment options it became clear that Curveball being more powerful unlocks his kit as a whole. So we wanted to assess Phoenix in a world where Curveball is more competitive with the rest of the ecosystem to get a sense for the impact of the changes. We view Phoenix as an aggressive entry Agent, so the additional Run It Back and Blaze changes are intended to support his proactive intentions when taking space or fights early on into rounds.
Curveball (Q)
- Flash Max duration increased 1.1s > 1.5
- Flash Windup decreased .7s > .5s
Blaze (C)
- Phoenix will now equip his weapon earlier if he stops bending his wall
Run it Back (X)
- Phoenix will now spawn at the marker with the amount of shields he had when the ability was cast.
Yoru
We’ve noticed you Yoru players having a bit of friction achieving the dream of setting up a master plan while in ultimate. We’re hoping these changes will reduce a bit of that problem, rewarding you for using your flash during ultimate, while still preventing unhealthy play patterns that leave enemies without counterplay.
Dimensional Drift (X)
- Increased duration of ultimate 10s >>> 12s
- Reduced unequip time 1.2s >>> 0.8s
KAY/O
KAY/O hasn’t had much of a quality of life pass since we’ve last had some changes so we wanted to reduce some pain and help you access more parts of the kit that haven’t felt as accessible.
FRAG/ment (C)
- Zone diameter reduced 10m >>> 8m
- Damage now applies without needing line of sight
- We’ve noticed a lot of inconsistencies with how the FRAG/ment is communicating the actual damage zone on the ability. We wanted to be consistent with how the visuals were showing the damage zone, so we’ve removed the line of sight requirement to apply damage.
NULL/cmd (X)
- Now, only allies will hear the full channel audio of reviving KAY/O, while downed
- Enemies will only hear a short audio cue when the revive has started, matching a similar gameplay pattern to playing around ultimate orbs or tapping the bomb
GAMEPLAY SYSTEMS
- New Smurf Detection functionality (North America)
- This addition to our smurf detection systems is designed to make sure that new players (that means all new accounts) are matched up with players of the correct skill level, much faster than before.
- We’re testing this change in North America first, to make sure everything is working correctly before a global rollout.
- Testing begins the week of July 11th, 2022
- Improved collision behavior when walking next to or behind another player.
- This should heavily reduce the amount of jitteriness experienced when moving close to your allies (rushing a site as a group or moving out of spawn should feel better!).
GAME MODES
- Twin Hunters in Spike Rush will now damage destructible walls
PERFORMANCE UPDATES
- Fixed an issue where having the Raw Input Buffer setting enabled caused scrolling in chat or friends list to go directly to the top or bottom
BUGS
Performance
- Fixed an issue where having the Raw Input Buffer setting enabled caused scrolling in chat or friends list to go directly to the top or bottom
Yoru
- Fixed a bug with Dimensional Drift where the invulnerability kicked in later than intended after it was cast.
Sova
- Fixed issue with Sova’s Shock Bolt not damaging enemy traps and other game objects (other than players)
Fade
- Fixed issue where Fade’s Haunt would sometimes reveal enemies that were on the other side of a thin wall
When Is the Valorant 5.01 Release Date
Though there's be no news just yet, most are expecting the Valorant 5.01 release date to be somewhere between July 13-21. We'll update once we know for sure, but that's genuinely everything we know right now.
What's Changing with Valorant 5.01?
Again, details are incredibly sparse at the moment, but a few leaks have popped up here and there. As always, take them all with a pinch of salt. There's no way to confirm their validity, so before you go complaining or applauding them, remember that it could all be a hoax from someone pretending to know more than they do.
Right now, the only major Valorant 5.01 leak suggests Yoru could be seeing some slight changes. No source was given at all, and it could all just be speculation based on community feedback, but it's something to keep in mind if you're currently looking at playing them.
Valorant 5.01 - Who's the New Agent
Just like there's no Valorant 5.01 patch notes or any decent leaks yet, there's also no word on whether or not Valorant 5.01 will include a new agent.
It's highly unlikely at this point - they tend to get a big marketing push way ahead of time - but that hasn't stopped people from making up some fun memes regarding who might end up being added to the Valorant roster in the next patch.
Linus
First up, 10+ million strong tech-tuber Linus Sebastian - of Linus Tech Tips fame - dunked on the roster by adding himself to the lineup. It's worth noting that the brand's social profiles aren't always managed by him, though, so like that "I'm thinking of retiring" meme from a few years back likely wasn't started by him, his employees are certainly fans of using his image to get some retweets. Is that a Sinden light gun?
Travis Scott
On June 28, a bunch of Twitter accounts started to suggest that Travis Scott was coming to the game as a brand-new Agent.
Of course, the model used in the fun mockup was the one using in Fortnite during one of its high-profile concert events. In fact, the character bio beneath even says "from Fortnite," completely disregarding the performer's legacy in the music space.
And that's all there is to say on Valorant 5.01 right now. If the Copenhagen finals have you itching to go pro, you'll want to check out the best mouse for Valorant roundup we're constantly keeping updated.