The Valorant community bubble popped after a tweet about Unreal Engine 4 versus Unreal Engine 5. Up for some visual upgrade? Some of the players are bubbling. Possible performance issues? The others screamed. And honestly, the responses were just a big bag of mix.
Generally saying, the literal tweet didn’t set up any context; it merely showed a visual comparison—the left side: Valorant on Unreal Engine 4 with that unmistakable crisp and clean tactical shooter look. The other side was probably assumed to be: dark, moody, and filled with bleak uncertainty, i.e., Unreal Engine 5. But then, the big rig: no one actually has come out and said that Valorant is even switching engines, yet players went nuts faster than anywhere in the replies.
Some gamers like @Raph_Prov joked; “At least my lose streaks will look prettier if we get a visual upgrade,” while @racisteater countered with: “Go fix the gameplay, we don’t care about graphics. This is an FPS game.” And honestly? Fair enough. Valorant’s whole identity is built on tight, competitive gameplay, not flashy visuals.
Then comes the performance FUD. The players with an old laptop found cold sweats of the thought of an engine upgrade. @ohmygoditzee was right on point: “My stupid ass PC that runs Valorant at 50-100 fps max is DONE for ✌️🥀.” And they’re not alone-many other replies were echoing the fear that switching to Unreal Engine 5 would potentially block an older player-base.
That’s the dance and burn. Some rebuttals suggested that the “UE5” comparison might just be trolling or a misunderstanding. @Jonathanlan14 said that the dissimilarity in the images could just be “low vs. full graphics settings,” not an actual engine change. In contrast, @Nathemill revealed to everyone that if Riot does upgrade engines, it will be for things like the replay system, not prettier textures.
Of course, not everyone was doomposting. A few optimistic folks, like @Rekienheiwa, saw a silver lining: “Finally broke people won’t play the game, loading up to a game will be faster 🙏🏼.” Harsh? Maybe. But hey, shorter queue times are always a win.
There is also spicy commentary: @IMoonlight29 analogized it to “MW19 vs. MW22,” insinuating that an engine change could deteriorate the game. And @agostinhozeku just came out and stated, “a shit LOL.” No filter on that one.
What is Riot planning? So far, there has not been a confirmed announcement about an Unreal Engine 5 upgrade. But if they did follow the route, then designers would have to preserve accessibility along with improving visuals. Because the very success of Valorant depends on it being able to run on a toaster.
For now, players are left with speculation. Some want better graphics, others want better anti-cheat (looking at you, @roperttitiago). And honestly? Both are valid. But until Riot drops an official announcement, this debate will just keep raging in the replies.
One thing is for sure-if Valorant does switch over to Unreal Engine 5, it had better not be some endless “can you run it?” nightmare. Because when asked to choose, no one’s going to pick glowy shadows over shadowing their shots.
