Riot Games' popular first-person tactical shooter "Valort" will celebrate its fifth birthday on Monday and reveal the game's first unplayable character ever, Phoenix's estranged sister Mary Ade, celebrates her new track "Ego" in a collaborative music video with the Nigerian singers Front.
According to the new character, Mary Ade is a new singer-songwriter who is “becoming a fire with her latest single “Ego” (Ego). After spending her early years in London, she moved to Lagos, where she honed her songwriting skills and found her voice singing from her family’s past to her life in Lagos.
Recently named as one of Spotify’s artists, watching in 2025, 18-year-old “Ole” and “favorite Psycho” singer Qing Madi (who is herself a “Valorant” player) expressed the role of Mary Ade in the game and represented her in the music video.
"One of the things I like about Mary is that she represents African culture. Her name is Mary Ade, so it's like Yoruba where we are." type. "So it feels like inclusive extremism, like, this is we're on the map. In terms of video games, Nigerians, we really don't get a lot of stuff - we've been recognized lately, but we don't really get a lot of inclusion in spaces like that. So, we really want to be in this role, we really want to be in this role, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can all tell it well, because we can
Currently with over 35 million monthly active players, the free "Valorant" made his debut in the early stages of the global Covid-19 pandemic on June 2, 2020. The "Self" music video marks the first time that "Varante" shares new music revealed with new agents, maps and skin lines in the game, movie trailers, esports events, which suggests that the game's future plans are to expand its plans to expand its knowledge and storytelling through music.
Jonny Altepeter, chief music director at Riot Games, said the collaboration was unusual because when Riot approached Qing Madi to work on a team, she already had an unreleased song "Ego" ready for what they thought they thought was a perfect fit for the project.
"The whole idea behind the first meeting was like, grabbing the atmosphere and seeing if there was something there. It looked absolutely perfect; her energy was exactly what we were looking for," Altepeter said. "We've finished the talk and I was thinking, are you interested in writing a demo and opening something. She actually took the phone out and she said, "I've been doing it all the time." I want to show you. "It's a rough demonstration, it's just her voice and guitar, and I and the creative director of ("Vallan" looked at each other, our chin just dropped, thematically correct. Specifically, it's like the moon, and the stars have only one line.
"Valort" was released on PCs in China in 2023. The game was released last August on the Xbox Series X and S and PlayStation 5 in the US, Canada, Europe, Japan and Brazil, and it was Riot’s first live service console game. As Riot's first live service console game. A mobile version of "Valorant" produced in collaboration with Lightspeed Studios was announced in April and will debut in China for its first time. As it celebrates its fifth anniversary, Valante is also preparing for the Masters esports championship in Toronto, followed by a championship in Paris later this year.
“When we launched ‘Valorant’ in 2020, we were eager to show what we think about the tactical shooter genre and there were some new twists and turns…all of which were in an unforeseen twist of the global pandemic,” said Anna Donlan, head of the studio “Valorant”. Ultimately, we are ready to support the players and hope that 'valort' will bring some slow attitudes in this challenging time, even if it's just a little bit. As we pass the five-year milestone, we have been given a lot of opportunities to reflect and new challenges and new challenges that allow us to keep working harder as our commitment to this game and my commitment is stronger. My community is so, so I used to be such a wealthy journey, so travel so cautiously that we can travel so well.
To date, Riot Games Music has curated a catalog of 59 songs related to "Valorant" that have accumulated nearly 1 billion global streams over the past five years. According to a recent survey by Midia, Valorant players report some of the highest music listening times among gamers, who usually outperform the average crowd.
“When we thought about how we could integrate music to commemorate our anniversary, we asked ourselves, what if we created a special music moment that reflects the journey of our players and characters? This path led us to Mary, our first non-playable character in 'Valorant' and Phoenix's emotional sister. A gifted musician, her song 'Ego' represents a duality in our 2025 journey – a celebration of our players who have been with us these past five years and an emotional moments. ”
Maria Egan, head of Riot Games, said the game’s previous collaboration with artists around the world helped “increase authenticity as we were able to explore these cultures and delve into the stories told by “valant.”
“Games are set in the modern world of the future Earth realm, so we are able to tell these regional stories with IP,” Egan said. “As IP grows, we will extend to more and more places. ‘Ego’ is another great example of how we can now use ‘Valorant’. It’s a ballad, and it’s more emotional, as this game already tends toward EDM and hip-hop.
Watch the music video of the list below and “Varante”’s “Self” and listen to new tracks here.