Don’t be left in the dark with our guide to VALORANT’s Sunset map

Sunset is a great map for VALORANT players who have experience in other games. It’s relatively gimmick-free, straightforward, and boasts a traditional three-lane layout. Use all your CS:GO skills in this one, they’ll work a treat. Mid lane control is crucial, if you can take it early on you’ll have a bunch of useful locations open to you. Aside from a single destructible door, you’re looking at a map with no quirks or shortcuts – leaving you to focus on your pushes.

Packed with food trucks, sunshine and modern amenities, this Californian town of tight-knit neighbours is under threat. According to VALORANT lore, a major Kingdom facility sprang up in the neighbourhood, with the company slowly buying up more and more land, leading to an unsafe and unpleasant environment for locals. The destruction of an underground portal left a massive sinkhole in the town and caused damage to nearby buildings, but seems to have caused Kingdom to halt operations for now.

Once you’re in control of chokepoints and the mid, Brimstone’s abilities could be enough to finish the whole affair. From smoking out mid pathways to bringing grenades down on a pushing enemy, Brimstone fares well in this traditionally laid-out map. You can also seek revenge for a good play on the opposing side by dropping an Orbital Strike.

Killjoy is a great pick in tight spaces and can be used to defend (and create) chokepoints in the map. Use her Nanoswarm abilities to control connecting paths, and force the enemy through a funnel, positioning another ally at the other end to take them out. You can also use Lockdown to pry back the mid if you feel like you’re losing ground.

You’ll need to take advantage of the enhanced verticality of Sunset to truly come out on top. Boxes in this map are a little higher than you might be used to, so use Jett’s abilities and agility to get the higher ground and pick off enemies from unexpected angles.

Use the slightly weird and blocky terrain to your advantage. This urban sprawl is good for more than looking pretty – you can lift your agents higher than in most other maps. Get some height behind you and make the absolute most of unusual and unexpected angles. Many players will expect traditional gameplay in Sunset, so surprise them and swoop in from above.

Use stealth and covering across the B site, then go heavy and all-guns-blazing across the slightly wider A site. Account for campers and lurkers on the opposing team, and use them wisely on your own – many players go slow and steady to begin with, then come crashing in for all-out firefights in the courtyard-like spaces. Be prepared for a switch-up, and try to get there first.

Tip 3: Always secure the mid lane

Just one more time, secure the mid lane. The B site is slightly tougher due to its cramped layout, so opponents will often compensate by packing in extra agents, meaning the mid might be wide open for your own uncontested claim. This is the dream scenario, but one that happens more often than you might think. Once you have the mid, you can push through the courtyard doors and lock them, pushing through Boba and claiming the site for yourself. Easy.