Communication and Pings in Valorant

Teamplay is mandatory in Valorant. You need to agree with your allies on what to do during the game. And of course this requires a good communication. So we explain here the basics of Communication in Valorant.

These are subjects we’ve already seen briefly in other guides, such as the guide on the economy or the guide on Attack and Defense, but we will centralise and detail all the important information here.

Communication

You can’t play Valorant without considering your allies and strategising with them. Whether it is for the management of the economy or for the various attack plans, these are decisions that must been taken collectively. A mediocre team that communicates and acts as one will have better results than a messy team of skilled players.

It costs nothing to remind it: always be polite and courteous to your allies. You’re on the same team, you have the same goal, and you need to get along if you want to progress. Negative behaviours, reproaches or insults will only make your allies turn on you and make them stop listening. That said, let’s continue.

Generally, there will always be one player on each team who will assume the role of leader. If no one does so, it’s your responsibility to take the lead and try to guide your allies. If debates are allowed, it’s generally more relevant to trust a single leader, rather than to create dissension. This can only waste and team cohesion.

Take advantage of the buy phase to discuss strategies to adopt with your allies. The leader should first tell you how to manage your economyThis phase is all the more important for the Attacking team. This phase is all the more important for the Attacking team, which must play the same score, otherwise it loses the only advantage it has against the Defenders.

Communication Tools

To communicate, we will of course prefer the use of the microphone. Even if you’re shy, you’ll have to force yourself a little. Speaking directly to your allies allows you to not only be quick in your communication, but also to share information without affecting your gameplay.

Typing on your keyboard is way too slow and impossible at the heart of the action. This must be the last resort for communicating in game. Written chat, on the other hand, is the only way to communicate with your opponents. All other tools can only be heard by your teammates and/or friends in your group.

Less conventional, there are also two other useful auxiliary communication systems within everyone’s reach: pings and calls.

Pings

Pings allow you to place indicators directly on your allies’ minimap, as in other games like League of Legends. They also appear transparently through the walls, with a distance indicator. They allow you to warn your allies faster and more clearly than with your microphone.

To ping, hold the W key and select the ping you want to use with a mouse gesture.

The Radio

Radio communications are pre-recorded messages that you can send to your allies. You can use it just like pings, they’re used via a communication wheel, or through a selection menu similar to the selection of weapons.

The difference between radio messages and pings is that they don’t put any indication on the minimap. On the other hand, they offer more varied and precise information. For example, you can report that you plan to go to a particular bomb site, or ask for a heal.

To use the communication wheel, hold the “.” and select the call you want to make. There are several different wheels. You can switch between them with your mouse scroll wheel.

We advise you to change the default shortcuts for pings and for the communication wheel. It’s very useful to have them available just under your fingers.

Communication wheels are especially useful for players who don’t have a microphone. Don’t hesitate to over use it to share information with your teammates. Their use should not, however, take precedence over your movements and actions. In the middle of a fight, you have better things to do than pinging that an opponent is in front of you.