What you need to know about VALORANT’s new Premier Mode: Practice Matches, Seeding Changes, and more

Several highly-anticipated improvements on Premier, VALORANT’s newest competitive mode, have made their way to the game, making it even more accessible for players who seek a higher mode of competition.

First unveiled in October last year, Premier will also become an integral part of the VALORANT professional circuit in 2024, offering a chance for the best players in the world to compete against each other with the Premier Stage.

The adjustments being made are part of Riot Games' preparation for a full-fledged grassroots initiative to unearth and recruit new, talented players from all over the globe into the esports scene.

It will begin as a regional event before seeding teams into higher levels, beginning with the Challengers 2024 circuit. Teams that do well have the chance to compete against professional teams for a place in the Challengers Ascension tournament.

A bunch of changes have been rolled out to make the player experience even better, all with the goal of enhancing the game mode's overall quality. These updates include things like introducing new divisions, setting up a 15-minute playoff queue, timeouts during matches, and more.

If you and your friends are looking forward to getting your hands into a more challenging mode of competition, we’re here to fill you in on these changes.

New Divisions

Here are the new Divisions, ranked from highest to lowest:

• Contender

• Elite 1-5

• Advanced 1-5

• Intermediate 1-5

• Open 1-5

Players are free to form teams of any competitive ranking, and the Premier system will automatically place them in the appropriate division. The Matchmaking Rating/Rank (MMR) of the top five players on the team will be used to determine the team's division.

Matchmaking

When playing against teams in the same division as you, you can be certain that their average team MMR will be rather stable throughout the season.

Expect most weekly matches to come together within 8 minutes at most. If you end up waiting longer, it's best to stick around in the queue.

Leaving and re-queuing will only make your team wait even longer. Tournament brackets should typically be ready within 20 minutes.

Again, if the wait goes beyond that, hanging in the queue is your best move.

During playoffs, there will be a 15-minute window in place to ensure better matchmaking, as opposed to a generic queue setup.

Timeouts

In each match, teams have the option to take a timeout on their side, plus there's one called Overtime Timeout.

On top of this, if you've already used your timeout, no need to fret – you'll have it again when you switch sides on the map or when the game goes into overtime.

Practice mode

One of the most commonly requested features of Premier mode is the ability to practice with teammates. This would now be possible on certain days aside from match days.

On certain days other than Match days, there is a one-hour window in which you can participate in a Practice Match.

The rules of these games are the same as regular Matches, but they do not count towards your team's weekly match limit, your Premier Score, or your division seeding.

Each week, practice matches are designed with a straightforward best-of-one format, all played on a single map.

If a tie persists after three overtime periods, sudden death will come into play to determine the winner. Teams also have the option to utilise a timeout twice during the game and once during overtime, mirroring the approach of a standard Premier League contest.

Playoff seeding

To secure a spot in the Playoff Tournament, teams need to accumulate 675 points. It's important to note that Playoff qualification is determined by your team's Premier Score, rather than your position in the Standings. As long as your Premier Score meets the qualifying threshold and you queue up at the designated time, you'll be eligible for bracket placement.

Furthermore, teams with higher Premier Scores will enjoy more favourable seedings in the Playoff Tournament, increasing their chances of a beneficial matchup.

Here’s the full stage for Primer Stage E7A3:

If you have further questions on participating, you can find Riot’s FAQ here.

Anna is a freelance writer and photographer. She is a gamer who loves RPGs and platformers, and is a League of Legends geek. She's also a food enthusiast who loves a good cup of black coffee.

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