Valorant Mobile Will Have a "Really Big Focus" in Southeast Asia

Valorant had a successful first year and after months of leaks and speculation, Riot Games confirmed that Valorant Mobile is in development. The announcement was made in June 2021 as part of the Year 1 celebrations, to let fans know what to expect from the game’s future. Following the official announcement, Riot General Manager Justin Hulog told One Esports that Riot is considering Southeast Asia as the first region to receive access to the game but also listed the downsides of doing that and why they may not go ahead with that approach. He talked about how the esports ecosystem in the region is “mobile-first” and it would be the perfect launchpad for the mobile version of Riot’s popular shooter.

Riot Games feels Southeast Asia is the perfect launchpad for Valorant Mobile

In the conversation with ONE Esports, Hulolg stated, “it does make sense to potentially go out in Southeast Asia first,” but there are unique challenges that Riot Games is facing. There are very high expectations that players have about how a game like Valorant should perform on mobile. Which means that Riot Games may have to consider looking “at other regions that are less demanding first. Valorant Mobile is going to have a really big focus in Southeast Asia just because of the fact that it is a mobile-first region.”

Despite the region’s love for mobile esports, Riot Games may have to hold back and release the game in a smaller region to test the game and work out the bugs that may be present during development. Fans will have to wait for an official update to find out when the game will be heading to mobile devices. All we know for sure is that the mobile version of the game will feature the same gameplay elements and it will not be a spinoff title.

While an official release date is not yet available, there are instances of games already trying to copy Valorant Mobile. There are some clones out already, and it remains to be seen if Riot Games is able to offer a compelling gameplay experience on mobile devices. Tactical shooters on mobile are not too popular at the moment and all of the focus is on battle royales and MOBAs. Riot Games has the perfect opportunity to cash in on Valorant’s popularity and expand to mobile devices.