Pujan ‘FNS’ Mehta, one of the greatest IGLs in the history of Valorant explained how Skye will still be in the Valorant meta after the 8.01 Patch. Skye received a huge nerf in the recent patche where Riot removed her ability to fake flash. In short, her Guiding Light has a timer after which it flashes. In addition, unlike other Initiators, her flashes do not reset after being used. This can be a huge problem for esports professionals and ranked grinders alike.
FNS in a recent stream explained how despite the nerfs, she can be a viable Initiator when combined with Gekko. He also said how the recent nerfs to Skye are attempts to bring Gekko into the main meta of the game.
FNS says that Skye’s kit is still valuable due to her Trailblazer ability which can gather information about enemy players. Aside from that, her kit is still viable because it serves the same purpose in the meta. The only thing missing is her ability to fake flash and the comfort of using the Guiding Light just to gather information on the enemy’s whereabouts. “I think Gekko will be added with Skye as Double Initiators, you are going to need a drone of some kind to take space,” FNS said in his stream.
Why Skye was Nerfed in Valorant Patch 8.01
Skye was one of the most important Agents in professional compositions since she served multiple purposes. She was the perfect Initiator since her fake flash could easily distract enemies and upset their crosshair placement. In addition, she also has the Trailblazer to gather information. The reason why she is perfect is because she can do both things Initiators are designed for; gather information and assist teammates.
On top of that, she also can heal teammates when they are low on HP, making her the perfect addition to any composition. A lot of professional players didn’t take the nerf well since the VCT 2024 season is approaching soon. Teams will now have almost no time left to prepare for regional tournaments due to sudden changes.
Meanwhile, Gekko has a flash with 13 uses per round, which marks their EXACT location
A molly the size of Texas that 1 shots you
And a literal 6th player
EDIT: OH AND A MASSIVE SHARK THAT MOVES AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT https://t.co/ZFB5Gv3eIK
— NRG Ethan (@ethanarnold) January 23, 2024
I use to think riot was smart about balancing changes, but recently I feel like their solution is just
over tune several agents and see if they’re played,
doesn’t get played so they basically destroy meta agents to force the agents they thought were good? https://t.co/GUWa3nd7c5— Erick Bach (@Xeppaaa) January 23, 2024
Professional players themselves explained how these changes can destroy their preparation before tournaments. Erich ‘Xeppa’ Bach spoke about how Riot tends to nerf meta Agents to make space for the ones that aren’t played. They did the same thing with Chamber and Jett. Doing this for future Agents can be trouble since it reduces the trust professional players and gamers have in the organization.
