NetEase Project M looks like a Valorant clone TechAlert24

The mobile games industry has been on the rise for a while, and with more competition, there’s a good chance that studios will try to copy the mechanics or aesthetics of already successful games. Valorant, one of today’s most popular online multiplayer games, has had a lot of success on PC.

A mobile version of Valorant has been rumored for a long time, and Riot has confirmed their plans to do so. Meanwhile, it appears that NetEase, a Chinese game publisher, is attempting to fill the Valorant-shaped void on mobile with Project M, a 5v5 competitive arena shooter of their own.

The game looks suspiciously like Riot’s 5v5 tactical shooter, but will it be able to match Valorant’s high points in terms of game design and success?

NetEase announces “Project M,” which resembles Valorant

This is Project M, a new mobile game from NetEase.

Looks… familiar… pic.twitter.com/HF4dz5fkbh
— Valorant News (@ValorINTEL) August 4, 2021

NetEase just announced Project M, and the beta test period started on August 5 and will run until August 6 on the Google Play Store. Given that Riot first teased Valorant under the codename “Project A” in 2019, the name “Project M” appears to be deliberate.

That appears to be a rather aggressive and combative move on NetEase’s part, and Riot may respond in the future. Valorant has taken the esports and gaming communities by storm in the last year, becoming one of the most popular games in the industry.

Riot has had a lot of success on mobile with some of their most successful franchises, such as League of Legends Wild Rift, and Valorant appears to be the perfect next candidate. The presence of NetEase’s “Project M” in the same FPS space as Riot is likely to add to the confusion.