It's been almost 6 months since Riot talked about this in this article, but do we have an official statement from Riot regarding when they will fix the directional audio in Valorant?

Riot has acknowledged in the past that,

We currently mix the game in stereo, meaning there is no difference between a sound 45 degrees to your left in front of you and a sound 45 degrees to your left in back of you. Some people expect to be able to hear this difference, but that is not currently possible.

This is why the maps have such distinctive material sound in different parts of the area (ie. sewer's water sound, metallic sound in vents, wooden floor) But I really feel like this is such a fundamental component in an FPS game. And it's mind boggling to me that they are even running so many tournaments before prioritizing this issue.

Riot also said,

We optimize for making sure footsteps are heard, as opposed to optimizing for portraying distance. What this looks like is an attenuation curve that is somewhat flat, versus one that drops off a lot over distance. There are a couple reasons we do this. One is that under chaotic conditions where abilities are being used and you are probably hearing a lot of VOIP from your team, it is essential that you don't miss a footstep.

NA players may be used to playing in a quiet room and hearing every detail, but players in China or Korea may be playing in a loud PC Bang, where a footstep that was quiet but gave more information on distance would be lost. I have never played professionally, but I imagine clarity would also be appreciated for esports players who may be in a noisy stadium (hopefully someday!)

Which I feel like is a bad reason for 'dumbing down' the game. If they really wanted players to get the most accurate information, they should have different audio volumes depending on the distance as that will provide even more info on the enemies. Asian players playing in PC bang, and therefore not being able to hear lower footsteps was such a cop out excuse for not implementing the accurate audios in the game.