Riot Games’ next major Valorant update is almost upon us and it’s an exciting one. If you want to become the best at one of the best competitive FPS games available, you’re going to want to check out Team Deathmatch (even though all the new TDM maps seem quite similar to maps we already know), the brand new game mode coming in Episode 7 Act 1. This is the big talking point of the next Valorant update, sure, but it might not be the only talking point – if you catch our snowdrift. It looks like Riot Games might just be already actively teasing the next Agent – just a handful of months after Gekko’s addition to the roster.
Ahead of the Valorant Episode 7 start date, on June 19 at 08:00 PST / 11:00 EST / 16:00 BST, Riot Games shared a short teaser showing Sova using their drone to scout a seemingly-abandoned icy outpost. We don’t know where the outpost is yet, and we don’t know what Sova will find there, however, it was posted with the following caption:
“Drone is on the approach, but battery levels are critical. Still no signs of life. Going in on foot. -Sova out.”
As you can see below, we really don’t get much from this teaser. Despite being an animated clip, the only real movement is the drone’s reticle and some sporadic snowfall. Sova doesn’t actually appear, and we don’t move any closer to the mysterious outpost. However, it’s actually quite important when you think about what else we’ve heard about the next Agent.
While we might think Valorant is just-about due a new map, or that it would be nice if Icebox was being added back into rotation, this teaser is most likely building up to the reveal of the next Agent. In the recent Dev Diaries video from Riot Games, executive producer Anna Donlon revealed that Valorant would be getting two new Agents before the end of 2023; one of these new Agents is a Sentinel that will “stop you dead in your tracks and pull you in for a closer look” and the other is going to be a Duelist.
You can see all of this in the final minute or so of the video discussing the next few months of Valorant below:
What does this have to do with the teaser, though? Well, there’s a faction of fans online that believe the next Valorant Agent – the Sentinel – is going to be Norwegian in origin, which could explain the snowy setting the teaser shows us. How have they come to that conclusion? Waffles, among other things.
When Donlon mentions the Sentinel Agent in the video above, we get a glimpse of some artwork showing a workspace and our mysterious new addition to the Valorant roster working on some sort of technological device. We’re not going to pretend to know what it will do, beyond what Donlon suggested, but eagle-eyed fans seem to think that the waffles on the left-hand side of the image suggest that this Agent is going to be from Norway. That means the snowy peaks we see in the teaser could actually be some of the 291 peaks you’ll find in the Scandinavian nation.
Graphic designer and Valorant food lore expert ‘uberchain‘ has explained in this Twitter thread that the curved stroopwafel shape we get a glimpse of suggests it’s Scandinavian in origin – something with corroborates with other theories that a Norwegian Agent is on the way.
However, that’s not even it. The “brown stuff” on top of the waffle – if it isn’t the handle of the coffee maker – could be Brunost, a common name for Norwegian brown cheese that is a popular topping for waffles. We know that sounds like a bit of a stretch in isolation, but together with the other evidence (like this email from Jett about “cargo pick-ups in Norway”), it seems like another clever hint of what’s to come.
In addition to all of this, notable Valorant leaker “Mike” has also claimed that this is a teaser showing Sova approaching “where the next Agent is”. We don’t know too many details beyond that, but they also say that we will “most likely see her abilities teased, as well as seeing her Bear due to the winter storm”. We can only assume, at this stage, that the “Bear” is going to be the name of the Agent’s gadget.
Is this Agent going to top our Valorant tier list? Only time will tell, we suppose. However, you can prepare for the new addition – and Episode 7 – by checking out the best crosshair settings right here and the latest Valorant patch notes here. We’re not expecting to see this new Agent arrive until Episode 7 Act 2, though, if they arrive at all. So, you have more than enough time to play around in Team Deathmatch, and make a start on climbing the Valorant ranks again without the worry that you’ll be missing out.
