Valorant is a tactical shooter created by Riot Games, and currently has over 16 unique characters in the Agent pool for players to choose from. Killjoy is certainly one of the best Valorant Agents to attempt to master and climb ranks with. If used properly, Killjoy can become the best defensive Agent in Valorant, with her abilities allowing players to damage opponents while taking site control.
Here's our comprehensive guide to playing as Killjoy in Valorant.
Read More: Valorant: How Agent Contracts Work
Is Killjoy Good in Valorant?
Killjoy, the German genius, secures the battlefield with ease using her arsenal of inventions. She is one of the strongest Agents in Valorant based on her high-damage utility.
Killjoy's set of abilities revolve around damaging enemies and controlling large areas of the site. She also has grenades that become remarkably efficient during retakes or post-plant situations. Due to this, Killjoy is an exceedingly skilled Agent who hold a Spike Site on her own, making her great for solo players.
She is classified as a Sentinel in-game and has an interesting background in Valorant's story. Killjoy seems to be a student of Brimstone, who likes to tinker with gadgets and scientific equipment. She joined the Protocol team after Reyna, and most of her voice lines in the game reflect incidents from her experiments with bots and machines. That being said, Killjoy was not affected by the First Light incident, meaning that she is not a Radiant, but uses Radianite technology for her tools.
Is Killjoy Good for Beginners?
Killjoy isn't available for players at first and needs to be unlocked by players. She is the most damage inflicting Sentinel in Valorant, so is certainly worth trying out at all levels.
Killjoy’s arsenal ensures that her squad always has the advantage while pushing sites or defending.
While entering sites, it's best to play Killjoy as a support Agent and hang back, making sure to set your Turret at an off angle and keep an eye out for enemies. Killjoy's Turret fundamentally becomes the first line of defence. It not only damages the enemies but also gives a good idea about their position. On the other hand, Killjoy gets two Nanoswarm grenades to place around the map, and each one is capable of killing opponents at full health.
Finally, we have Killjoy's ultimate, which allows her to lock down an entire Spike Site. This is undoubtedly the best retake utility in Valorant, as it forces opponents to leave the site or be detained, and thus unable to use their abilities.
Overall, Killjoy is one of the tougher Agents to master, but given her site control and high-damage abilities, she is certainly worth learning. When first playing Killjoy, it may be worth taking a slower-paced passive style until you become used to her abilities.
How To Play As Killjoy — Abilities & Skills
Here are Killjoy's abilities:
Alarmbot - Killjoy equips a covert Alarmbot. FIRE to deploy a bot that hunts down enemies that get in range. After reaching its target, the bot explodes, rendering the opponent Vulnerable. Hold EQUIP to recall a deployed bot.
Nanoswarm - Killjoy equips a Nanoswarm grenade. FIRE to throw the grenade. Upon landing, the Nanoswarm goes covert. ACTIVATE the Nanoswarm to deploy a damaging swarm of nanobots.
Turret - Killjoy equips a Turret. FIRE to deploy a turret that fires at enemies in a 180-degree cone. HOLD EQUIP to recall the deployed turret.
Ultimate: Lockdown - Killjoy equips the Lockdown device. FIRE to deploy the device. After a long windup, the device Detains all enemies caught in the radius. The device can be destroyed by enemies.
Killjoy's Best Weapons
The best weapons to select for any Agent in Valorant will depend on their role and the player's play style.
So if you're aggressively pushing sites with Killjoy for entry, then these weapons will be the best choice.
- Ghost
- Stinger
- Spectre
- Phantom
- Frenzy
- Sheriff
- Bulldog
In case you are hanging back and adopting a passive play style with Killjoy, then work your way around with the following weapons:
- Marshall
- Guardian
- Vandal
- Odin
- Operator
Tips for Playing Killjoy in Valorant
Killjoy is one of the most damage-inflicting Agents in Valorant. Her abilities are incredibly efficient during post-plant and retakes, but her role in Valorant is not that of an entry fragger. Hence, pushing sites blindly with Duelists is not the best option. She is better acting as a support Agent and getting clutches when needs be.
With this in mind, it's best to adopt a passive play style with Killjoy if you are a beginner in Valorant. Organize your abilities to create the perfect entry or defense for teammates, with flexible Turret positioning and Alarmbot placement. As a more experienced player, you will be able to utilize your abilities quickly and be vital to your teams' success.
Killjoy's signature ability is her Turret, so players need to use it as a secondary firing buddy. Place the utility at specific angles from where you can peek around it; the Turret (and Alarmbots) are great for alerting you as to when and where an enemy is present, and then you can secure a kill while defending an area. Placing the Turret at choke points or long alleys will always guarantee an easy kill if you can peek timely. This trick is highly efficient and can be executed during defense as well. Killjoy's final ability (that isn't her ultimate) are the Nanoswarms; these are the best grenades in Valorant. Placing them in specific areas will allow players to get free kills remotely if enemies don't flee from them fast enough.
Finally, Killjoy's ultimate ability allows her to Lockdown an entire Spike Site for 15 seconds. The ultimate forces the opponents to leave the Spike Site or be detained for 8 seconds. Anyone caught inside the radius will become a free kill once they are detained. This is her greatest strength in Valorant, and it works the best if Killjoy is coordinating with her teammates; combining this ability with Raze's Boombot, or Yoru's Gatecrash will always allow players to get easy kills on the retreating enemy. Killjoy's ultimate essentially allows teammates to push sites fearlessly, and hold angles that the opponents would try to enter from. The Lockdown gives the team time to either plant or defuse a spike when used at the right time.
Overall, playing Killjoy will require a lot of endurance and a knack for defending. The job of Killjoy players is to locate and damage the enemies while protecting the flanks. Hence, engaging in unnecessary duels and 1v1s isn't the best option with this Agent.
Killjoy's Weaknesses
There are a lot of weaknesses for a damage-inflicting Sentinel Agent like Killjoy. All of her abilities can be destroyed in Valorant, which balances Killjoy as an Agent.
Her Alarmbot can be destroyed but is the trickiest of the lot. It's best to jump out of the spot and avoid the trap altogether. However, do make it a habit to destroy the opponent Killjoy's Turret every time. It deals an enormous amount of damage to multiple targets that are in its line of sight and basically acts as a sixth teammate, therefore, it should be destroyed every time.
If the opponent Killjoy has already placed her Nanoswarms at a specific site, then destroy them immediately. At the same time, if the enemy Killjoy is using line-ups to throw Nanoswarms then it's best to push those line-up spots when you can predict them.
Killjoy's ultimate ability is perhaps the easiest one to destroy in Valorant. Players can destroy an opponent Killjoy's ultimate easily, as it is visible on the mini-map. Try to use Sova's ultimate, or Brimstone's Orbital Strike to clear out the enemy's Lockdown as soon as possible.
That's all you need to know about playing and countering Killjoy! To find who is best for you to play as in Valorant, check out our tier list of all agents here.
This article was updated on 17th November 2021 by Kelsey Raynor.