Legend is powerful. Revenge is dangerous. Corruption is inevitable. You are the Oni.
Inspired by ancient Japanese samurai culture and mythology, VALORANT’s Oni collection was first released in 2020 and became a highly-popular skinline among players. Oni will soon feature new skins for the Vandal, Ares, Bulldog, Frenzy, and a brand new Katana, the Onimaru Kunitsuna.
Oni masks are at the heart of this skinline – a combination of 3D renders and traditional 2D anime-style animation bring mask spirits and their effects to life for each corresponding weapon. The new Oni skins will launch with Episode 6 Act II on March 7th, 2023.
New katana melee animations, Visual Effects, Audio, Finisher, Variants
Weapons:
- Onimaru Kunitsuna (Oni Katana melee)
- Oni Vandal
- Oni Bulldog
- Oni Ares
- Oni Frenzy
Bundle Info:
- Bundle Price: 7100 VP
1. Onimaru Kunitsuna (Oni Katana melee)
2. Oni Vandal
3. Oni Bulldog
4. Oni Ares
5. Oni Frenzy
6. Oni Card
7. Oni Spray
8. Oni Gun Buddy
Levels
- Oni Guns
- Level 1 – Custom Gun Model
- Level 2 – Custom Firing Audio and Muzzle Flash
- Level 3 – Custom VFX and Audio on equip, reload, and idle
- Level 4 – Finisher and Kill Banner
- Variant 1 – Gold/Black
- Variant 2 – Pink/Mint
- Variant 3 – Blue/White
- Oni Katana Melee (Onimaru Kunitsuna)
- Level 1 – Custom Model
- Level 2 – Custom animation/VFX/audio on run, inspect, equip, and swipes
(this is a brand-new Katana and does not share any elements with the
RGX Katana) - Variant 1 – Gold/Black
- Variant 2 – Pink/Mint
- Variant 3 – Blue/White
Developer Q&A
What is the history behind Oni and why did the team decide to expand the
skinline?
Oni has been very popular with players for a long time. I really mean it when we say that we’re always paying attention to players’ feedback because the only reason we’re making more Oni is because players love it so much. Players are constantly asking for more Oni skins, specifically for a Vandal. The new Oni skins have been in mdevelopment for almost two years, so it’s been hard to not accidentally say “Oni Vandal” when I’m talking to players about skins! By expanding on the skinline, the team felt like they could really push the fantasy in a way we didn’t get to in 2020 with the original Oni skins. This time around, Oni has custom firing audio, so you’ll hear it’s ghostly corrupting echos even more. The team also went all-in to create a brand new katana that was completely different from RGX. Onimaru Kunitsuna, the Oni Katana, really comes to life when you inspect the blade and see that you are the Oni. -Preeti Khanolkar, Lead Cosmetics Producer
What is the story / inspiration behind the new skins?
Our headcanon for Oni is that it’s a corrupted, powerful heirloom that seeks revenge. The dark spirits of Oni have been lying in wait, determined to find a new path to exact their dark purpose on the world. The balance of traditional customs against the unrelenting power of progress has been upset, thus opening a rift between the worlds allowing the Oni spirits to bring about the perfect combination of corruption and mischief. -Sean Marino, Associate Art Director
Any unexpected design challenges or novelty stories you’d like to share?
Several times during development, we struggled to distinguish the Vandal from the Phantom in first-person. We worked closely with our design team to solve this in third-person (if it’s on the ground, it should be easy to tell it’s a Vandal), but many of us still felt that it’s a little hard to tell it’s a Vandal in first-person if you’re a spectator. I hope we’ve solved it and players feel like they can tell the difference in a split second if they’re spectating an ally. We also went through a ton of audio iterations to get the firing audio on the guns just right, so I hope players love how the subtle Vandal firing sounds even though the Phantom they fell in love with uses the default firing audio. -Laura Baltzer, Producer
Platforms: Microsoft Windows
