Valorant is a multiplayer FPS action game focused on team matches developed by Riot Games, the same creators of League of Legends.
Valorant offers a wide catalog of characters with unique abilities to choose from. The clashes are 5 vs 5 teams and the particularities of each one make it a tactical shooter.
Sova is one of the most used characters in the game. However, the latest Valorant update brought a Sova nerf along with modifications to his animations that directly interfere with his skill lineups.
Sova nerf in the latest Valorant 4.08 update
Riot Games decided that Sova needed a nerf in his abilities, and that was done in the most recent Valorant 4.08 update (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9).
The changes mainly affect the Sova Shock Dart and Drone abilities:
Source
So, shock darts will now deal much less damage, while the drone will have a shorter battery life and reduce the number of targets it can mark.
This especially affects those players whose main character is Sova. But, there is another change that impacts the Sova mechanics even worse, and it is related to their animations.
Valorant new Sova animations breaking his skill lineups
Riot Games also introduced new Sova animations in the most recent Valorant update that directly affects the character’s skill lineups.
A Valorant character lineup is a specific skill setup intended for the effect to land in a certain way.
A character’s animations also interfere with lineup abilities as they are used as a reference to launch the attack.
That said, the new Sova animations include one where his left hand covers left side of the bottom HUD when the character equips his bow. That area of the HUD is the visual reference for the Sova lineups.
Riot Games is aware, the classic Sova animations will return
Riot Games team is aware of reports on the matter. While the nerf to Sova abilities remains, they reverted the animations back to the classic ones.
The company does not offer details on whether the new animations will receive a tweak to return in future updates.
Many players are still unhappy with the update
Some players who don’t use skill lineups want to keep the new Sova animations. So, they request that they be optional.
Meanwhile, other players think the Sova nerf is enough to ‘kill’ the character utility, even without the new animations.
We will update this story as new events emerge on the subject.
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