In a move that was decidedly not part of her kit, the brilliant German inventor Killjoy has been temporarily benched from VALORANT as of late 2026. Riot Games, with a characteristic blend of humor and chagrin, announced the agent's suspension due to a particularly game-breaking exploit involving her trusty Turret. The company joked on social media that the ability to hide the device under the map must be "Killjoy's newest ability," a feature players were definitely not supposed to unlock. This isn't the Turret's first rodeo in the underworld; similar bugs have plagued various maps since the agent's debut, but this latest iteration proved severe enough to warrant a full recall.
The Subterranean Sentinel
The core of the issue lies in certain, often hard-to-reach, spots on VALORANT's maps that allow Killjoy's Turret to be placed beneath the visible floor or terrain. Once ensconced in its clandestine bunker, the automated sentry operates with ruthless efficiency, completely invisible to the opposing team. It will still detect, alert, and relentlessly pepper any enemy that wanders into its line of sight with damage-dealing bullets. The victim, caught in a one-sided firefight with an unseen foe, is left utterly defenseless, unable to locate or destroy the source of their pain. This creates an insurmountable and unfair advantage, turning strategic map control into a frustrating game of whack-a-mole where you can't see the mole.
Riot was quick to clarify that this clandestine deployment was, in fact, a bug and not a stealth buff. "Believe it or not, this update was not intended," a developer stated, confirming that Killjoy would be out of commission until a fix could be deployed. The specific trigger for this drastic action wasn't detailed, but history suggests it was likely a newly discovered or widely abused location that disrupted competitive integrity too severely to ignore.
A History of Glitchy Deployments
This isn't the first time Killjoy's mechanical companion has gone rogue and learned to clip through geometry. The problem has been a persistent, if intermittent, headache:
-
Episode I, Act II: The bug first appeared shortly after Killjoy's debut.
-
On Split: Early iterations allowed the Turret to see through walls or sink into the floor on the map Split.
-
Icebox's Release: When the icy map Icebox launched, crafty players quickly found spots to hide the Turret completely under the snow and terrain.
Each discovery forced Riot to patch specific locations, playing a never-ending game of cat and mouse with the player base. The Turret has also been involved in other quirky interactions, like players placing Sage's Barrier Orb on top of it—an exploit serious enough that Guild Esports was once disqualified from a major VALORANT First Strike qualifier for using it. 🚫
| Map | Exploit Nature | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Various | Turret placed under map | Agent temporarily disabled |
| Split | Turret seeing through walls | Location-specific patch |
| Icebox | Turret hidden under terrain | Location-specific patch |
| Any (Past) | Sage wall on Turret | Tournament disqualification |
The Void Left Behind
Killjoy's absence leaves a noticeable gap in the agent roster, particularly for players who favor a methodical, area-denial playstyle. As a Sentinel, her kit is uniquely designed to slow pushes and lock down bombsites. Her popularity metrics before the suspension were solid, boasting around an 8% pick rate at Diamond rank and above, coupled with a 50% win rate in high-tier play. Her forced vacation disrupts team compositions and strategies that have been meta staples for years. Players must now adapt, turning to other Sentinels like Cypher or the more recent additions to the roster to fill the defensive void.
Riot has not provided a timeline for her return. The community is left waiting, hoping the engineers at Riot can out-invent the game's own resident genius and bring her back to the battlefield—with her Turret firmly on the surface where everyone can see (and shoot) it. In the meantime, matches feel a little less chaotic, and flanks a little safer, but also a lot less interesting without the constant whirring threat of her inventions. The lesson, as always? In the world of VALORANT, if something seems too good to be true (like an invisible turret), it's probably a bug waiting for a fix.
😅 Let's hope Killjoy's R&D department at Riot finishes their troubleshooting soon!