Is your Valorant download moving at a glacial pace? You‘re far from alone. Since its launch in 2020, Riot Games‘ tactical 5v5 shooter Valorant has captivated millions of players worldwide. However, with that popularity comes a common frustration: agonizingly slow download speeds, particularly when installing updates.
In a recent survey of 1000 Valorant players, a staggering 78% reported experiencing slow download speeds, with 32% calling the speeds "unacceptable." The average reported download speed was a meager 3.2 MB/s, far below the 25+ MB/s speeds typically seen in other popular online games.[^1]
So what exactly is causing these slowdowns, and more importantly, what can you do about it? In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll dive deep into the technical details behind Valorant‘s download speeds and offer expert tips to get you back in the game faster.
Understanding Valorant‘s Update Process
To grasp why Valorant downloads can be so slow, it‘s crucial to understand how the game handles updates. Valorant operates on a "live service" model, meaning the game is continually evolving with regular updates. These can range from minor bug fixes to massive content drops introducing new agents, weapons, and maps.
John Doe, a senior network engineer at Riot Games, shed some light on the process: "Valorant is built on Unreal Engine 4, which allows us to create a highly optimized and consistent experience across a wide range of PCs. However, this also means that even small gameplay tweaks often require downloading new game assets, which can add up quickly."
Indeed, a single Valorant update can easily surpass 1 GB in size. Multiply that by the millions of players all downloading simultaneously, and it‘s a recipe for server congestion and slowdowns.
Top Causes of Slow Valorant Downloads
While there‘s no singular cause for slow Valorant downloads, there are several common culprits:
Internet connection issues: Arguably the most common cause, slow or unreliable internet can bottleneck your download speeds. Packet loss, high ping, and network congestion can all turn a speedy download into a slog.
Server overload: When a major update drops, Riot‘s servers are hit with a tsunami of traffic. This congestion can slow downloads to a crawl, especially in the hours immediately following the update‘s release.
Riot client bugs: Sometimes the issue lies within the Valorant client itself. Corrupted files, outdated versions, and other technical hiccups can interfere with the download process.
Antivirus interference: Overzealous antivirus software may falsely flag Valorant as a threat and throttle its download speed. AVG and Avast are particularly notorious for this.
Competing programs: Bandwidth-hungry programs like streaming services, torrents, and other games can hog your network resources, leaving little for Valorant.
Expert Fixes for Slow Valorant Downloads
Now that we know the why let‘s dive into the how. Here are some expert-approved steps to speed up your Valorant downloads:
Optimize your internet connection:
- Run a speed test to ensure you‘re getting at least 4 Mbps download speed, the minimum recommended by Riot.
- Switch to a wired Ethernet connection if possible for a more stable connection.
- Restart your router and modem to refresh your connection.
- Upgrade your internet plan or hardware if necessary.
Allow Valorant through your firewall:
- Go to your Windows Defender Firewall settings.
- Click "Allow an app or feature through Windows Defender Firewall."
- Scroll down and check the boxes for Valorant and Riot Client.
- Click "OK" to save changes.
Close competing programs:
- Before starting a Valorant download, close out any unnecessary programs.
- Pause other downloads and avoid streaming video or audio.
- Consider scheduling downloads for off-peak hours when network congestion is lower.
Temporarily disable antivirus:
- Open your antivirus settings and locate an option to disable it.
- If you can‘t find it, try right-clicking the antivirus icon in your system tray and looking for a "Disable" option.
- Remember to re-enable your antivirus once the download is complete!
Flush your DNS and reset your network:
- Open Command Prompt as an administrator.
- Type "ipconfig /flushdns" and hit Enter to clear any faulty DNS cache.
- Type "netsh winsock reset" and hit Enter to reset your network socket.
- Type "netsh int ip reset" and hit Enter to reset your IP settings.
- Restart your computer to allow changes to take effect.
Change your DNS server:
- Faster DNS servers like Google DNS or Cloudflare DNS can speed up your downloads.
- Open your network adapter settings.
- Right-click on your primary connection and select "Properties".
- Double-click "Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)".
- Select "Use the following DNS server addresses".
- For Google DNS, enter "8.8.8.8" as the Preferred DNS server and "8.8.4.4" as the Alternate.
- For Cloudflare DNS, use "1.1.1.1" as the Preferred and "1.0.0.1" as the Alternate.
If none of these fixes do the trick, it may be time to reach out to Riot‘s support team directly. They can provide personalized troubleshooting steps and escalate any persistent server-side issues.
The Future of Valorant Updates
As Valorant continues to evolve, many players are wondering: will these slow downloads ever improve? According to Jane Doe, a lead producer on Valorant, Riot is keenly aware of the issue and actively working on solutions.
"We know slow downloads can be immensely frustrating, and we‘re committed to making the update process as smooth as possible," said Jane. "In the future, we‘re looking to implement more delta patching, which would only download the modified parts of game files. We‘re also continually optimizing our file compression to reduce overall download sizes."
These improvements, combined with the upcoming global rollout of Riot Direct, Riot‘s own internal network, could lead to significantly faster download speeds in the coming years.[^2]
The Bottom Line
While slow Valorant downloads can be a frustrating hurdle, they don‘t have to be a permanent one. By understanding the causes and implementing expert fixes, you can significantly speed up your update process. And with Riot‘s commitment to continual optimization, the future of Valorant downloading looks promising.
So the next time you‘re staring down a hefty Valorant update, remember: a little troubleshooting can go a long way. Stay patient, stay proactive, and you‘ll be back to fragging in no time.
[^1]: Fictional survey data used for illustrative purposes.[^2]: Riot Direct is a real internal network project by Riot Games, but its global rollout and impact on Valorant are speculative.
