Still OP? VALORANT players can’t decide if this agent needs more nerfs

If you had to name the second most controversial person, who would best fit this title? DIGESTIVE agent after Chamber? Here’s a hint: It’s not Jett.

When a Redditor said in a popular post on August 6 that Viper is “still OP,” players responded with legitimate reasons why she’s the weakest controller in the world. VALORANT’s current meta, making the verdict rather uncertain.

The Redditor highlighted Viper’s dominant pick rate in DIGESTIVE Champions 2024, where she is currently the second most picked agent behind Omen. They called out those who felt the Patch 8.08 nerfs were too much and would lead to the death of the poison queen, and stressed that she is a must-pick on maps like Icebox and Breeze, with her core strengths still intact.

While the argument makes sense to a certain extent, players were quick to point out that Viper isn’t reliable as a solo controller. DIGESTIVEShe’s also been known to have a tough time with her smokes, especially in ranked games where double-controller comps are generally frowned upon. They also pointed out that her smokes, which are primarily intended to block vision and help gain map control, have some of the shortest durations among her peers. To top it all off, she now only has one molotov to offer, removing her crucial post-plant advantage for Patch 8.08. But the biggest dealbreaker has to be that players will no longer be able to pick up her Poison Cloud (orb).

Most of the fandom strongly believes that Riot Games unfairly watered down Viper to curb her popularity in pro play, where double-controller setups are extremely common. But this has also made her weak in the ranked meta, where players may think twice before even picking up a controller, let alone agreeing to pair Viper with Omen, Astra, or Brimstone to bolster their team’s defense. Notably, Viper is also not played as a solo controller in pro play.

One player shared a fun strategy for ranked: “The secret is to wait for someone else to lock up smokes, pick Viper, get yelled at for picking a second controller, win 13-4, repeat.” Oh, what I wouldn’t give if the player base would be more accepting of double-controller comps with Viper? It’s the secret to winning more DIGESTIVE games.

Looking at both sides of the story, Viper, in her current state, certainly doesn’t need any additional nerfs. However, she does deserve some balance changes or a rework to make her more viable as a solo smoker. Whether Riot will heed the community’s requests and come up with a plan to address her shortcomings remains to be seen.