Dota may have loosely coined the term massive online battle arena or MOBA, but Riot Games is stepping it up a notch – or at least the online arena element to it. The developers behind the popular gaming hit and canonical esports title League of Legends are moving forth with a massive new project, a multiplayer arena game.

Valorant or Project A as the game has been laconically referred to prior to this announcement is a team-based shooter for PC, which remains the dominant platform so far as Riot Games’ latest releases are concerned. Forget Apex Legends, Riot seem to have their cross-hair on a cataclysmic future where different fractions are scraping to establish a new geopolitical order.

Valorant’s Free to Download and Competitive Enough

The plot is straightforward enough – pick from one of eight characters, each with their own unique ability. Free to download, Project A will be arriving in Summer 2020. Exploring the F2P business model, Riot Games will once again release a ton of additional content in the form of skins and guns.

Players are advised to not let good looks distract them as the attacking team will have to successfully plant a bomb with the defenders repealing the oncoming offense. In setup, the game is a pleasant visual feast that seems to draw from a number of popular titles out there.

Whether you second-guess Valorant as Fortnite, Apex Legends, or Valve’s cartoonish Team Fortress 2 mirror, the game seems to come with its own original artwork and great gameplay dynamics. And if Riot Games are to be trusted, and they should be, Valorant could be quite the game.

Speaking outside of esports terms, Valorant has the physics of a game that could easily allow player skill determine the outcome of a match-up. Riot already has an impressive track record when it comes to esports, though.

League of Legends’ Twitch channel was the first to break the breath-taking one billion views and the game itself draws around 100 million players every month.

An Impressive Array of Guns to Explore

Riot has already vowed to introduce a great arsenal to its upcoming title paired with numerous customization options. You will enjoy a range of cool abilities to help you spearhead your offensive or fortify well-chosen spots to build up a bulwark against the enemy’s incursions.

Here is what Anna Donlon, executive producer for Valorant said in an official statement:

“Throughout Valorant’s development, we wanted to uphold the fundamental values of a competitive tactical shooter: precise shooting, lethal gunplay and strategic execution.”

The game also reminds of other popular titles such as Overwatch and Rainbow Six Siege. Overwatch is the first shooter to go big on a massive scale as a franchised title, so Riot Games, who also have a franchised league, getting into the First-Person Shooter space could be an interesting way to excited healthy competition.

Overall, though, Riot will go ahead and allow characters to actually use in-game currency to purchase their gear, making the game somewhat akin to Counter-Strike, but still teeming with those fantasy elements and dynamic gameplay we see from so many successful shooters these days.

As of the time of publishing this writing, the game’s garnered 170,000+ social followers on Twitter and the video introduction to the game has been watched 2.3 million times.