VALORANT’s newest agent, the robotic initiator KAY/O, is receiving buffs to his FLASH/drive and NULL/cmd abilities in Patch 3.06, which is set to be released today.
KAY/O’s flash bang ability FLASH/drive received reductions to the windup telegraph for both the left-click and the right-click versions. This means the flash will take less time from when it first lights up to when it detonates, making it harder for KAY/O’s opponents to avoid. The audio that’s attached to FLASH/drive when it gets thrown will also be removed.
Additionally, KAY/O’s ultimate ability, NULL/cmd, has received a buff. It now doesn’t stop pulsing after KAY/O has been downed. This means that KAY/O can still provide ability suppression pulses while he’s been downed and makes it a little easier for his teammates to come pick him up.
In the patch notes, the VALORANT dev team acknowledged that the “over-indexed on telegraphing the projectile, which is holding back its success.” They hope these changes will make KAY/O more viable and reward players who “put in additional effort to throw clever pop flashes.”
The changes come alongside a nerf to a popular initiator’s flash ability since Skye has received a nerf to her Guiding Light in this same patch. With her activation times increasing and KAY/O’s decreasing, perhaps the newest agent will become a more popular pick for teams that play faster.
At VCT Masters Three Berlin, KAY/O had the second-lowest pick rate at a dismal two percent, just one percent higher than Yoru, who was dead last. Skye had a 54-percent pick rate, which was fourth overall and would have been much higher if not for her low Icebox pick rate.
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