Riot Games has been meeting privately with gaming organizations in recent weeks to give teams a rundown of the esports plans for its new first-person shooter title, Valorant, according to sources. The free-to-play tactical shooter has started generating buzz in the gaming world after debuting live action for the first time this week with its closed beta private test, which is available for esports pros, streamers and media. The game will be available to everyone sometime this summer, but it already has nearly broken Twitch’s all-time concurrent viewership mark, underscoring Valorant’s potential as an esport. Some in the gaming industry predicted that Valorant would not get into the esports realm for at least a year after the game was released, but sources say that Riot already has been meeting with top organizations to give them the roadmap for the competitive side of Valorant. The meetings are notable because Valorant is being seen as a potential challenger to Overwatch League and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Riot’s esports plans for Valorant could potentially make for an even more crowded field of games jostling for top players, sponsorships and media rights.
