Valorant players have been waiting to hear when Riot Games will finally switch the game over to Unreal Engine 5, and now we have a date. The transition will occur with the upcoming patch 11.02, scheduled for release on July 29. This change is expected to deliver improved frame rate performance and faster patch downloads in the future.
As Valorant approaches its fifth anniversary, Riot has been busy shaking up the game. The new map Corrode was added recently, alongside tweaks to agents like Reyna and Neon. Plus, Riot is working on cracking down on smurfing. But the engine upgrade is one of the biggest technical jumps the game has seen.
The developers initially mentioned the switch would happen “at the end of July,” but Riot’s Kenny ‘Karnifexlol’ Cameron clarified that patch 11.01 will be skipped entirely to prepare for this update. Instead, all planned changes for 11.01 will be included in patch 11.02.
What to Expect in Patch 11.02
- Transition to Unreal Engine 5
- Improved frame rate performance
- Faster patch downloads in the future
- Special gun buddy reward for logging in during the patch
Besides the engine upgrade, Riot has more in store for later this year. The long-awaited replay system is expected to launch with patch 11.06 in September. After the Valorant Champions event in October, players can look forward to a fresh round of major buffs and nerfs to agents.
Honestly, it’s kinda interesting to see how the game will run once on Unreal Engine 5. Will the performance gains be noticeable during intense matches? Only time will tell, but Riot is clearly eager to improve the experience for everyone.
