Valorant Implements Anti-Cheat Updates After Major Ban Wave

Summary

• Valorant is intensifying its fight against hackers with ranked rollbacks, which reverse progress or rank if a match is affected by cheaters.
• These new measures aim to penalize cheaters and ensure fair play for all Valorant players.
• Players teamed with hackers will retain their rank rating, preventing any unfair rank losses.

Valorant is taking decisive action against the recent surge of hackers by implementing ranked rollbacks. This move comes as part of Riot Games' broader strategy to combat cheating and restore fair play within the game. Valorant's head of anti-cheat, Phillip Koskinas, recently addressed the issue on Twitter, emphasizing Riot's enhanced capabilities to tackle cheaters. He stated that Riot can now "hit so much harder," underscoring the severity of the new measures.

Cheating remains a pervasive issue across many online games, with hackers constantly seeking unfair advantages. Despite Valorant's reputation for having one of the best anti-cheat systems, the game has experienced a notable increase in hackers, negatively impacting player experiences. In response, Riot Games is adopting tougher penalties to deter cheating.

Koskinas shared detailed insights into the new strategy, revealing that ranked rollbacks will reverse players' progress or rank if their match was compromised by cheaters. He also highlighted the effectiveness of Riot's Vanguard system, which has already banned a significant number of cheaters in January, with the peak occurring on January 13.

Riot Games' Future Valorant Bans Will Include Ranked Rollbacks

Addressing concerns from players about the fairness of matches involving cheaters, Koskinas clarified the impact on different scenarios. If a player wins a match with a cheater on their team, they will retain their rank rating. Conversely, the enemy team will have their rank restored. While acknowledging that this approach might lead to some inflation in rankings, Koskinas expressed confidence in the overall strategy.

Valorant's Vanguard system, utilizing kernel-level security clearance on PCs, has been highly effective in detecting and banning cheaters. Its success has inspired other games, such as Call of Duty, to adopt similar anti-cheat measures. Despite these efforts, hackers continue to find ways to bypass security systems.

With thousands of bans already implemented, Valorant's community remains hopeful that Riot Games' commitment to eradicating hackers will lead to a fairer gaming environment. The effectiveness of the new ranked rollback technique will be closely watched by players and industry observers alike.