What is the Valorant Raw Input Buffer and how does it help?

What is the Valorant Raw Input Buffer and how does it help?

Raw Input Buffer in Valorant helps players make the best out of their peripherals in the shooter. The developers have always been strict when it comes to competitive fairness for all players and the option enables that.

Given that performance plays a huge role when it comes to competitive shooter games like Valorant, even a slight disparity between performances can lead to your opponents getting the upper hand which leads them to a win.

The Raw Input Buffer option in the settings remains a mystery for many in Valorant and in case you’re wondering whether you should turn it on or not, we have you covered. Our guide will make sure that you know everything about this new feature in Riot’s tactical shooter.


Raw Input Buffer visually explained visually
Raw Input Buffer visually explained visually (Image via Riot Games)

What is the Raw Input Buffer in Valorant

When input information is given in a system, it is usually done through an operating system, in this case, Windows. These types of inputs are filtered, so there is some amount of delay included. This is exactly where the Raw Input Buffer feature comes in to eliminate this delay in Valorant and receives inputs directly.

The option uses a unique API (Application Programming Interface) to process the incoming input data into the game. While most competitive shooters try to use this feature in the back end, Valorant just adds their experimental feature to provide minor improvements.

The improvement mentioned above is noticeable in gaming mice that use high polling rates. A polling rate can be explained as how many times a mouse sends information in one second. So, if a mouse sends 1000 data inputs in one second it is said to have a polling rate of 1000 Hertz.

How does Raw Input Buffer help in Valorant?

Mouses like Razer Viper 8K use a polling rate of 8000 Hz which gives computers more information to process. Raw Input Buffer can use this ample amount of information and convert it for Valorant to give a more effective performance.

However, there is a drawback of using Raw Input Buffer in Valorant that affects frame rate. There is a slight loss in FPS when using the feature which has been noticed by players.

So if you have a weak system, there is a likelihood that your game might stutter. If your system isn’t weak then you are free to use the feature in Valorant and is highly recommended.


 

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