Riot Games has launched its latest VALORANT capsule ‘Run It Back: Lunar 26’ which includes six fresh cosmetic items that feature weapon skins and a gun buddy. The VALORANTLeaksEN Twitter account announced the bundle which costs 8,825 Valorant Points (VP) and includes items that cost between 1,575 VP and 4,950 VP for the ‘fidget spinner’ gun buddy and premium knife skin respectively. The release has created an instant clash between players who discuss the game’s pricing system and how much value they assign to cosmetic items.
Riot has released another ‘Run It Back’ capsule which is named The Lunar 26 thing. Players have strong excitement about new skins because they want to explore the latest Phantom and Vandal skins which have been released. People started discussing this topic when they reached 100 percent capacity. The skin conversation first started with the small gun buddy price and then progressed to the skin reveal which contained Evori’s Spellcaster knife and Nocturnum Phantom and other items. The FDGT // SPNR Flex which functions as a fidget spinner weapon accessory costs 1,575 VP. The bundle contains items that cost more than the Ghost skin which is included in the same package. Players were like, a digital spinner costs more than a whole weapon skin?
The replies on the tweet are a whole mood. User ‘Warriedxd’ just straight up said, “Flex costs more money than an actual fidget spinner 💔”. The explanation about their answer should be understood correctly because it reveals truth. You can buy a real, tangible fidget spinner for like, two bucks. The pixel version costs more than fifteen dollars in VP. Another player, ‘sech28’, just responded with “15€ flex HJAHAHAHHAHHAHAH”. The people watching the situation show their complete disbelief about what happened. But then you get the other side, like user ‘_ig_skye’ who commented, “I only bought the flex tbh love it !”. The specific item has value for certain people because they desire it with intense passion.
But the pricing confusion didn’t stop there. People were scrambling to figure out how the bundle works if you already own some items. User ‘pigeonwithnohat’ asked, “can we buy separately or no i only want the op”. ‘cloud_weiss’ who worked at the time needed to confirm his game since he already possessed the knife and phantom. The daily life battle for VALORANT players includes handling VP calculations while trying to manage their other commitments. Someone else, ‘wootizu’, even thought their game was bugged because the price in their store showed over 10k VP. The replies showed pure disarray and confusion throughout the response.
The discussion then proceeded to more extensive topics beyond the spinner. User ‘_JustFox’ launched into a bigger critique, saying, “It’s just sad at this point, like they need to do something about this fr, greedy and lazy ass company, making stupid buff’s, creating shitty skins for money that is more than a monthly pay literally in some countries”. The point he made carries great weight. They argued with another user named ‘AKBcasual’ about whether players should spend money on skins which players actually need to buy (which they do) and how this spending affects players from various countries. The discussion about the bundle became an extensive examination of Riot’s worldwide pricing system and player perception regarding their worth for time and money spent which extends beyond cosmetic items.
Some players tried to justify the spinner’s price. The response from ‘BitchIncineroar’ explained why the product costs more since it has unique animations which create its value compared to previous versions which only float and spin. The argument exists that the product is not static because it actually performs specific functions. Halfling-BRAE’ explained the problem when he said that players could not show off their animation unless they had someone who could watch them play the game. The horn and bubblegum buddies represent similar problems. You pay extra for an animation which only you can enjoy fully. The choice you made is a specific decision.
The classic Riot player move cannot be forgotten. The absolute first thing ‘AKBcasual’ said to everybody who was complaining was “Everyone be hatin’ but be the first ones to fall into night-market clawssss 😭🙏”. The people who think this way probably have a correct assessment of the situation. The predictable price protest cycle leads to a silent buying surge when items become available at reduced prices through Night Market. The circle of life exists within free-to-play games.
The Lunar 26 capsule presents a complete view of how the current gaming economy operates through its display in VALORANT which functions as a major gaming platform. Players want to experience new content which gives them different ways to build their game experience. The growing VALORANT esports scene and the game’s presence on platforms like PlayStation and Xbox contribute to this complex ecosystem.
