Two of the three regions in the VCT have begun play this past week, and fans are finally getting a look at what franchised professional VALORANT is going to look like.
Not only are players going to settle into a routine of weekly matches and a more consistent tournament structure, but fans will also now get to see how the game’s meta develops week-to-week.
Though we are still awaiting the start of the VCT Americas league, some interesting statistics have already emerged from the Pacific League, based in Seoul, and EMEA League, based in Berlin. Interestingly, two of VALORANT’s most iconic and popular agents haven’t even been picked once in the first week of play.
According to statistics from The Spike.gg, both Chamber and Reyna are currently sitting at a zero percent pick rate in the 2023 VCT regular season.
Chamber’s disappearance from the meta has mostly been on everyone’s radar since his massive nerfs went through at the end of 2022, but he still received some play at this season’s opening LOCK//IN tournament. He also hasn’t dropped as far down the ranks of the most popular agents being picked in ranked gameplay, either.
It, however, looks like this is truly the end for Chamber, as he wasn’t played even one time across the 11 matches played so far across both regions.
Aside from his nerfs, which completely knocked the wind out of the agent by disrupting his momentum and fluidity, particularly with his Rendezvous ability, Chamber has also suffered because the game’s current meta doesn’t suit his remaining strengths either.
With Bind and Breeze both out of the map pool, teams are forced to take closer engagements in tighter spaces on maps like Split and Lotus. On these maps, other Sentinels just work better. Killjoy, for example, has been thriving in this meta.
The other agent that seems to constantly suffer from a massive discrepancy in how often she is played in casual versus professional play is Reyna. A very popular agent for players across casual and competitive queue, Reyna is rarely played on the VCT stage.
Part of the reason why Reyna seems to work better in ranked games is that she is an agent that thrives on her own individual performance. Meaning if you have a disconnected team, say your Skye seems to keep flashing you with every eagle she sends out, (we’ve all been there) you can take things into your own hands and snowball every round as Reyna.
But in a coordinated team setting, Reyna just feels lackluster compared to other choices in duelists, like Jett. Professional players will almost always play a Jett over a Reyna because Jett’s utility is just so much better.
There are players who have made Reyna work on the professional stage, but they are few and far between, and it doesn’t look like teams will start using her any time soon.
Once the VCT Americas league starts up, we will have to see if Chamber and Reyna get any playtime. Some of the best Chamber players in the world are competing in the Americas this season, so if he does make an appearance, it could be there.
