Valorant Implements Anti-Cheat Updates After Major Bans

Summary

• Valorant is implementing ranked rollbacks to reverse progress or rank if a match is affected by cheaters, aiming to penalize hackers and promote fair play.
• Players on the same team as hackers will retain their rank rating, ensuring they do not suffer unfair losses.
• Riot Games' head of anti-cheat, Phillip Koskinas, emphasized their commitment to combating cheating, highlighting the effectiveness of their Vanguard system.

Valorant is taking significant steps to address the recent surge in hackers by introducing ranked rollbacks. This new measure is designed to reverse players' progress or rank if their match was impacted by cheaters, ensuring a more equitable gaming environment. Riot Games' head of anti-cheat, Phillip Koskinas, has publicly addressed the issue, emphasizing that Riot can now "hit so much harder" against cheaters and detailing the specifics of these changes.

The problem of cheating is a persistent challenge in many online games, where players seek unfair advantages. Despite Valorant boasting one of the best anti-cheat systems, the game has recently seen an increase in hackers disrupting player experiences. In response, Riot Games is implementing stricter measures to penalize those who cheat.

Phillip Koskinas took to Twitter to acknowledge the issue and reassure the Valorant community that the studio is actively working on solutions. The new strategy includes ranked rollbacks, which will reverse players' progress or rank if their match was lost due to cheaters. Koskinas shared a chart illustrating the number of cheaters banned by Riot's Vanguard system in January, with the highest number of bans occurring on January 13.

Riot Games' Future Valorant Bans Will Include Ranked Rollbacks

A player raised concerns about the fairness of winning a match with a cheater on their team, pointing out the unfairness to both the opposing team and those unknowingly teamed with hackers. Koskinas clarified that players on the same team as hackers will retain their rank rating, while the enemy team will have theirs restored. He acknowledged that this approach might be inflationary but expressed confidence in moving forward with this strategy.

Valorant's Vanguard system, known for its effectiveness in detecting and banning cheaters through kernel-level security clearance on PCs, has inspired similar systems in other popular games like Call of Duty. Despite the success of such systems in driving out cheaters, new methods always seem to emerge, allowing hackers to return.

Valorant has already banned thousands of players, instilling hope among those facing hackers in ranked matches. Riot Games remains committed to resolving this issue and curbing the latest wave of hackers. The effectiveness of the new ranked rollback technique is yet to be determined, but it represents a proactive step towards fairer gameplay in Valorant.