VALORANT: Can we expect a Phoenix buff in the near future?

The agent that rises from his flames has been failing to rise in pick rate. Take a look at the reasons for his downfall and some fans’ suggestions. 

Phoenix is one of the five agents available by default in VALORANT. The fiery duelist has been with us since the beginning but has been forgotten. At times he has been called the worst duelist or agent in the game. The pick rate of Phoenix in the last 30 days has been 0.74% in Radiant and 2% in Immortal. Phoenix has the highest pick rate in Iron, 12.8% which declines as the ranks increase.

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Reasons for his low pick rate

Phoenix’s Curveball had its price increase from 200 to 250 in patch 3.0, after this the already low picked agent was done for. The introduction of new duelists hasn’t helped his case either. Yoru’s ability revamp and introduction of Neon into the game has pulled phoenix to the bottom of the hierarchy.

Phoenix doesn’t set himself apart from the other agents and is the only duelist without a movement advantage. The duelist’s kit contains a flash, molotov and wall which can be used to heal himself. The problem here is he seems to be a jack of all trades but a master of none. Reyna can dismiss, Raze can satchel, Neon can sprint, Jett can dash, Yoru can teleport, these abilities set them apart from the rest of the herd and Phoenix’s toolkit fails to do so.

Fan Suggestions

Triplebabyquadra, a Reddit user suggested revamping Phoenix’s kit by giving him the ability to surf on his wall. This creative suggestion from the user sparked a discussion on Reddit.

This ability would help Phoenix get into locations “reserved for” Jett and Raze. One user suggested changing his self-heal ability to an ability that heals all his teammates, but this beats the concept of Phoenix’s fire. Another user suggested increasing Phoenix accuracy while running during his ult.

According to me Phoenix should get a movement ability like the rest of the duelists and the flash duration should be increased, this should help with the pick rate. We can’t say for sure whether Phoenix will receive buff or not since there haven’t been any recent leaks. But we can say one thing for sure, he sure as hell deserves one.

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