Valorant newest duelist Iso snubbed in the latest VCT Kickoff Tournament

Valorant pro players proved unimpressed by Iso’s kit after the duelist became the only unplayed agent in the recent VCT Kickoff Tournament. 

Valorant’s most competitive pro tier recently kickstarted its 2024 season, with Kickoff Tournaments seeing action across the four VCT regional leagues. As the first-person shooter game’s S-tier pro scene, many players and fans look to the games to discover new strats and combination plays to bring to their ranked games. 

Besides the greatest players and the victorious teams, the agent pick rate is among the most-awaited statistics after each VCT tournament. More often than not, the agent pick rate in the pro scene reflects the current meta in Valorant, and most players would follow suit. 

However, an agent received the short end of the stick during the VCT Kickoff 2024. The newest duelist, Iso, failed to receive attention from the top players and received an astonishing zero pick rate for the group stage. 

Valorant latest agents, Iso and Deadlock, sink in pro pick rate

Iso is not alone on the lower end of the table, as his fellow recent addition to the agent pool, Deadlock, only saw action once in the VCT Americas game between Evil Geniuses and G2 Esports. 

Both agents notably received lukewarm reactions from streamers and the rest of the player base upon release. Sentinels’ head coach, Kaplan, singles out the agent from his role, saying that Iso does not fulfill the demand of duelists to “dive out of chokes.” 

The only viable single duelists in pro play have the ability to dive out of chokes, Iso doesn’t.

It’s already hard for an agent to earn a flex spot in double controller meta. In single controller comps, that flex spot can go to all the initiators, duelists, and sage…

Iso’s kit offers a shield and protection instead of the duelist’s usual mobility kit. While Jett has dash, Raze with her satchels, and Reyna has her dismiss, Iso’s shielding capability is not necessary in a role required to clear and enter the enemy territory.