Multiplayer first-person shooters have been the most popular games all over the world. When it came out in 2017, Fortnite immediately became one of the most-played games and the battle royale that quickly overcame PUBG in popularity. Valorant was published two years later, in 2019, and it rapidly grew in a market dominated by CS: GO, Call of Duty, and other first-person shooters. This article will discuss which game is better for you to play.
Before we start, we are aware Fortnite and Valorant are totally different game genres. Fortnite is a battle royale game that revolves around looting, building, and players surviving the last. At the same time, Valorant is a first-person, tactical hero shooter that demands more shooting prowess than anything. As someone who played both games, Fortnite seemed more fun since I wasn’t very good at shooting, and it lets me do more things around the map. Moreover, the Anti-Cheat software called Vanguard is needed for Valorant to be playable, and when the software runs on a kernel driver, that can be an issue.
Despite these games being different genres, we will still compare their main aspects and determine which game suits casual gamers better. The first game that reaches four points “wins” this interesting discussion. If you are interested in this topic, stay with us until the end of the article.
Game environment and graphics
When it comes to these two games, both Fortnite and Valorant are quite similar in the way they are designed. Fortnite always reminded us of cartoons, and its colorful terrain and environment attracted many of younger audiences. In the beginning, veteran gamers disliked that design but fastly changed their mind when they started playing it. Fortnite always encouraged fun first, and the game’s design reflects that perfectly. Also, for the cartoonish-looking game, Fortnite actually looks amazing, and it uses graphic engines that provide that feel.
Regarding Valorant, Riot Games used a similar design, but it’s still unique to them and their other games – mostly League of Legends. With the success of League, Riot developed its unique style that is now recognizable worldwide. Valorant uses similar aesthetics as League but is more futuristic because the game is set in the future. The characters look great and colorful, and they remind us of today’s cartoon style.
Because the games are so similar in graphics and offer a unique feel to each player, we need to give points to both games in this section.
Fortnite (1) : (1) Valorant
Combat
Fortnite and Valorant have different combat mechanics. Fortnite has similar combat to a slightly older colleague, PUBG, but still offers something different. There are several different styles of weapons and tools which players can use in combat, which can surprise any opponents. Moreover, Fortnite uses its building heavily in combat sequences, and players can build forts to snipe other players from afar or lure them into their buildings and execute them.
Valorant is different in that aspect. Combat in Valorant is closely related to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, mainly the items and shooting mechanics, while the skill and powers remind us of Blizzard’s Overwatch. Now, some would say these two games “copied” other games’ combat mechanics, but they made them their own and enhanced them with something unique to them. Because both games have different combat styles, we will split the points in this section.
Fortnite (2) : (2) Valorant
Popularity
When it comes to multiplayer games, popularity is significant. Let’s start with Fortnite. Since its release in 2017, Fortnite has gained much traction amongst gamers, especially the younger ones. The game was “mocked” by some veteran gamers for that fact, but more players started to play Fortnite, and the game exceeded every expectation.
Fortnite today has over 300 million registered users on Epic Games and over twenty-two million regular players every day, sometimes even more – it depends on newly released content. For years, Fortnite has been on top of gaming popularity in years and only recently has Minecraft managed to come closer to those numbers.
Valorant was developed and created by Riot Games in 2019, and since then accumulated a great player base and created a solid community. However, if we compare Valorant to Fortnite, it cannot measure Epic Games’ game regarding popularity. There are around 20 million registered users registered on Riot Games and two million active players daily. This section overwhelmingly belongs to Fortnite.
Fortnite (3) : 2 Valorant
Updates and DLCs
Updates and new content are regular for both games and are usually updated every two weeks. Moreover, both games have similar season and chapter systems, where they release new content, events, and story lore.
Regarding Fortnite, Epic Games used celebrities, famous movies, and TV shows to enrich their content. In 2022, Dragon Ball, Naruto, DC movies, Hero no Academia, and even NBA stars appeared in Fortnite in the form of skins, cool weapons, and other items.
Valorant sticks more to their “own thing.” One of the things Valorant “borrowed” from League of Legends are cinematics, new characters, and updates. Despite this section being similar to Fortnite, Valorant has more “organic” content included in the game. This doesn’t take away from Fortnite, and although most players rate new avatars and weapons, many players rate in-game updates that include some cool stories.
Riot Games is always great regarding cinematics, in-game, and character story lore updates, but Fortnite does its own thing, so we have to split this section as well, which puts Fortnite slightly above Valorant in points.
Fortnite (4) : (3) Valorant
Which game is better for you to play – Fornite or Valorant?
After thoroughly analyzing these really popular multiplayer games, we learned that they are similar but also unique in their own way. Fortnite relies on building mechanics, roaming around a map, looking for cool loot, and trying to survive attacks from other players. Moreover, the content is updated every two weeks, which provides players with a new balancing of the gameplay and cool features. The same is with Valorant, which mostly focuses on good tactics and shooting prowess, closely similar to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
Of course, Valorant has a few other features that make it unique, and it regularly updates its game with new characters, balancing of gameplay, and new features.
The only thing that Valorant lacks compared to Fortnite is its popularity. Fortnite is in the top five of most-played multiplayer games on the planet, while Valorant is played by gamers who value first-person shooting and tactical gameplay.
In my case, after playing both games, Fortnite seemed more fun, especially when they introduced new game modes that didn’t have building features. Most players would say that building mechanics make Fortnite much harder, but with various game modes, people don’t have to indulge in that gameplay and focus more on fun than seriousness. The Vanguard issue with Valorant was bigger when it first came out, and the fact that has access to all your computer data is still concerning despite Riot Games ensuring players that the personal data of the players is not sent back to their headquarters.
Valorant seems more skill-based, which newer (or untalented like me) players will find hard to get used to. These two aspects are why Fortnite seems like a good game for casuals. However, we can say that both games deserve a chance because they offer different gaming experiences that players can value the way they want. Your personal preferences matter the most, and this is the case for these two games – you play what you like and enjoy the most.
