- Riot Games applied many nerfs to Sova, replacing some animations that players use often
- This sparked discontent amongst many Sova mains
- Riot acknowledged these complaints and reverted to the old animations
Just 24 hours after the announcement, Riot has reverted the animation changes it applied to Sova, but will still nerf the agent in other ways.
Riot Receives Backlash over Sova Nerfs
VALORANT’s Episode 4 Act 3 is launching on April 27, and with it come many new fixes, skins, and cosmetics, as well as the newest agent Fade. However, a few planned changes for an already existing agent caused the VALORANT community to protest Riot Games’ decision, prompting the company to revert them.
The agent in question is Sova, who recently got a slew of nerfs ahead of the release of the game’s newest patch, which centered around the agent’s animations. According to a Reddit post documenting the changes, Riot added a new animation when Sova equipped his bow that made his left-hand cover up the left side of the HUD at the bottom of the screen.
The third change in particular is a big problem for Sova mains because that HUD is used for reference in a ton of lineups for Shock Dart and Recon Bolt.
With glaring problems like this, the VALORANT community spoke up. Fans flooded Riot Games’ communication channels, demanding the nerfs to be reverted or changed. In less than 24 hours, the company responded saying it will revert back most of the changes.
How Will Riot Nerf Sova Now?
Sova will be getting some new nerfs, however, Riot Games has confirmed it will not implement the newest animation changes. His Shock Dart will now deal 75 to 90 points of damage depending on where and how it lands on a target. Sova’s Drone will also receive changes, namely a reduction in the time it is active. The Drone will now last for only 8 seconds and have only two scans with a delay. However, it seems the device is now a bit faster.
Being released with the game in 2020, players have had a long time to learn how to use his ability to bounce his utility off services to take the game to new heights. Players have found ways to shoot the Recon Bolt in ways the developers never intended, giving them a big advantage. The same applies to the Shock Dart that can be shot or bounced to hit enemies or enemy utility in places they would never suspect.
Realizing this is now part of players’ skill repertoire, Riot Games decided it’s not worth it replacing the animations.
