Riot handing out big Valorant bans for players who queue with cheaters

Riot Games is making a promise to not just stop Valorant cheaters, but those who play with hackers. New punishments, including big bans, are on the way to stem those who “ride the cheat bus on the highway to hell.”

Cheaters in Valorant have been a big problem since the game’s release. Despite the deep Vanguard anti-cheat, sometimes players slip through the cracks. Late in 2020, this was a massive problem as players grinded for the best Act Rank possible before Episode 2.

Riot’s systems have adapted though. They’ve boasted about their low cheating rate, although were quick to concede that the negative of encountering just one outweighs the positives.

“We’ve worked to make cheating difficult and expensive, and as a result, the percentage of games with a cheater is a fraction of a percent,” developer Matt ‘K3o’ Paoletti told players on January 27.

“However, those who were able to cheat impacted players far too often. Encountering a cheater isn’t just an inconvenience — it could mean a missed promotion, or a demoralizing halt of a win streak.”

While Riot has done a solid job tackling cheaters, including even snagging a prospective pro mid-scrim, there’s another level they need to address ⁠— players who willingly queue with cheaters.

This is harder to detect with Vanguard, as player intent isn’t clear. However, Riot is looking at cracking down on repeat offenders with 90-day bans. It’s not quite a Hardware ID ban like those dished out to cheaters, but it’s something for those who leech off of them.

• Read More: Top 10 Valorant player banned for cheating mid-scrim

“We saw that some players also looked to bask in the ill-gotten gains of cheaters by teaming with them—knowing that the cheater would get banned after a few games, but they would get to reap the rewards,” K3o added.

“One of the first new efforts is to discipline players who queue with cheaters, or as we can colloquially call it, ‘ride the cheat bus on the highway to hell.’ Rank should be an indicator of your skill, not your ability to pay for a service.”

Further Vanguard anti-cheat changes to recalibrate rank

That change is one of many being implemented to Vanguard in Episode 2. Riot is looking at a system to recalibrate players’ ranks after cheaters are banned. This is a similar system to how Ubisoft tackles hackers in Rainbow Six.

“The team is also looking at other measures to rectify the damage caused by cheaters, most noticeably, re-calibrating your rating after it may have been impacted by illegitimate players. All forms of boosting are being considered,” he said.

More changes are expected in Episode 2 and beyond, but it’s a promising trend to try and tackle what was once an out-of-control problem.