Valorant
As we head closer to VCT Masters Tokyo, it isn’t a surprise we’re getting new cosmetics in-game. VCT Masters Tokyo is set to begin on June 11. In the past, we’ve seen exclusive skins being launched for the VCT events. New skins are always a good way to ensure that there’s some new content available in the market. Let’s take a look at the bundle and see if it’s worth the price.
5 Weapon Bundle
This is the first time we’ve seen a bundle consisting of multiple weapons for a VCT Tournament. Previously for the Lock//In tournament, we had a knife with variant colors representing the various regional leagues of the game and the two VCT Champions skins consisting of either a Vandal or Phantom, plus another knife as well. (Making them a tad bit more expensive due to their exclusive nature.)
The guns available in the No Limits Skin Bundle are as follows:
- NO LIMITS Vandal
- NO LIMITS Bulldog
- NO LIMITS Spectre
- NO LIMITS Ghost
- NO LIMITS Bat
Image Credits: Riot GamesThe skins have a black body with prominent red accents around the edges. The primary characteristic of the skin in-game is the color shift caused by light and shadow. In outside daylight, the skin has a gray and red coloring scheme; it turns a dark crimson and black tint at night. All of the weapon skins appear pretty pristine and appealing to the eye despite having few animations. Alongside the skins, there are also three new player cards included in the set.
Plus, a baseball bat skin makes an appearance in the game for the second time in the form of the NO LIMITS Bat. (The melee weapon from the Radiant Crisis 001 skin pack was the first time a baseball bat skin was included in Valorant.) If conversations on reddit are to be believed, many in the community believe the baseball bat melee weapon is the best part about the bundle.
The Hidden Lore behind The Dog Statue
Within the skin for each weapon, other than a word in Japanese and the city skyline design, a statue of a dog can be seen on the body of the skin.
It’s quite possible this dog statue is a reference to the statue of Hachiko at Shibuya Station. Hachiko was raised by Hidesabur Ueno, a professor at the Tokyo Imperial University College of Agriculture. He would consistently appear to wait for his owner to arrive home from work outside the station in Shibuya. Sadly, Ueno passed away, but Hachiko kept appearing in front of the station to wait. He did this for so long that he became a fixture at the station, with locals, passengers and workers expecting him to appear each day. When he eventually passed away, Shibuya Station had a statue made and placed in front of the station in his honor.
Riot taking inspiration from the story of Hachiko might be for sentimental value, but it does help in giving exposure to a part of Japan’s history.
No Finisher Animation?
Upgradeable weapon skins have always been a part of the VCT Champions skins, either using a finisher animation or a pull-out animation. Like the VCT Champions 2022 Phantom skin, it had the finisher consisting of the VCT Champions trophy in the sky. Another example is the VCT Champions 2021 Vandal, with its brimstone finisher.
So far, sources of the leaks claim the No Limits package differs in this way. There is no mechanism for upgrading the available skins. Many players have therefore assumed, perhaps mistakenly, that these skins won't feature reload or finisher animations. Riot does appear to be experimenting with skins that might be exclusive, yet not the most costly sort. Currently, it’s unknown if this bundle is exclusive and will eventually be taken off the market, much like the VCT 2022 Champions offerings.
Image Credits: Riot GamesIn Valorant, the No Limits bundle would fall under the deluxe bundle category, with each weapon skin said to cost 1275 VP. The price of the melee baseball bat skin is 2550 VP, making the total price of the bundle in-game roughly 5100 VP. Many players likely won’t buy the skins at launch unless it turns out they’re exclusive. But, for enjoyers of the Japanese culture or tournament skin collectors, it might be worthwhile.
