The Chinese version of Valorant began its closed beta test on May 2. The test is the most significant technical verification test before the game's official launch in China. So what’s new about it? What changes and adaptations have been made to Valorant to cater to the unique gaming culture and regulations in China? Let's take a closer look.
Better Connections
During the current closed beta test, Valorant has opened up four server nodes in Tianjin, Chongqing, Nanjing, and Guangzhou, allowing players in most regions of China to choose and enjoy excellent servers with a latency of 10-20ms.
Each server has two routes for you to choose from in case there are too many players at the official launch
Previously, players in China had to endure latency of 40-60ms to play on servers in regions such as Japan, and players in northern regions even had to tolerate latency in excess of 90ms. Better network connectivity is undoubtedly the most significant improvement since the launch of the Chinese server, and it will greatly enhance the gameplay experience for Chinese players.
Potentially cheaper skins
Valorant has provided beta testers with 100,000 Valorant Points to purchase battle passes and the skins in the store that refresh daily. It's worth noting that the price of purchasing a cosmetic collection on the Chinese server has been reduced from 7100 points to 5560 points, which is likely in anticipation of the official launch when the exchange rate between Valorant Points and CNY will be adjusted from the original 14:1 to 10:1.
Currently, the store offers three collections, including Gaia's Vengeance, Singularity, and Sovereign, which are fixed and refreshed regularly.
As a country with strict regulations on video games, China's server for Valorant has implemented unique features such as a health advisory notice displayed on every loading screen, as well as adjustments to some of the more violent content.
“Please play games in moderation and reject addiction.”
During this closed beta test, we found that enemy corpses will immediately disappear and turn into circular boxes with flashing yellow lights after being killed.
The kill icon has also been changed from a skull to an X shape. Additionally, the option to highlight enemies is only available in yellow and purple, while red has been removed.
Some Chinese voice lines have also been modified, such as Cypher's "give me a corpse," which has been changed to "give me an interface" in the Chinese version.
The voice line still works with the hacker style background story of the character though
The test includes four maps and the first 16 agents, with attributes consistent with those of other servers. Currently, the competitive mode is only available from 7-11 pm each evening during the test.
