Valorant's latest agent is Filipino

MANILA, Philippines — Great news for Filipino Valorant fans! 

A new agent is set to be released on January 11. Besides being the game’s first new character in 2022, the upcoming agent will be the game's first Manila-born agent.

"I’ve been at Riot for a while now and until now, there’s only been talk here and there of making a character from the Philippines. I’m a Filipino designer, so the opportunity to help bring a Filipina agent to life in Valorant is an absolute blessing to me all the way down to the core," said Valorant game designer Ryan “rycou” Cousart.

The new character Neon, codenamed Sprinter, is described as an athletic young Filipino who is fast and surges with bioelectric energy. Her signature ability, High Gear, allows her to sprint fast across the map and when charged, triggers an electric slide. Her ultimate ability, Overdrive, unleashes a deadly lightning beam that deal unequivocal damage.

"Everything on [Neon's] kit had two words we kept going back to on the design side to keep it cohesive. These were ‘fast’ and ‘frenetic’. The goal we had aligned on for Neon was that she would move fast and her utility should supplement. I was so excited to see how well we had hit the goal of having abilities that pair well with going fast that it left the prototype phase with basically the same kit," said Cousart.

Neon was previewed last January 6 with a trailer released by Valorant. The trailer showcased Neon's electrifying speed, and quite a few Pinoy Easter eggs for Filipino fans with Neon speaking in her Native tongue, and a "PILIPINAS" jersey hanging on her wall. The trailer was set to music by Australian-Filipino singer Ylona Jade Garcia's new single “Entertain Me”.

Neon will be voiced by Filipino voice actress Vanille Velasquez, who is also set to voice a new character in League of Legends, Zeri.