VALORANT is releasing a new cosmetic bundle called the Black Market bundle, which will transform some in-game weapons into their real-life counterparts used in Counter-Strike. This move could be seen as an attempt to keep players interested in VALORANT, as Counter-Strike 2 was recently announced. The Black Market bundle will include skins for the Vandal, Bulldog, Marshal, Classic, and knife, which will resemble the AK-47, FAMAS, Scout, Glock-18, and butterfly knife, respectively. The skins will also change in appearance depending on whether the player is attacking or defending, similar to Counter-Strike.
While players have been requesting the ability to swap skins during a match, this is not currently possible due to performance concerns. Riot is still considering this feature, but they want to ensure that players with less powerful gaming rigs can still play the game without issues. It remains to be seen how Riot will respond to the looming threat of Counter-Strike 2, but this move towards more realistic and stripped-down skins could be a way to keep players interested in VALORANT.
