Riot Games plans on big penalties for AFK players in solo queue

William Davis Published 10/06/2020

Riot Games is planning on giving harsher punishment to AFK players, the developer revealed in a recent update on fighting against game-ruining behavior.

Back in May, Riot shared its plan to stop the game-ruining behavior in solo queue. After a month of research and the deploying of some small fixes to solo queue, Riot is starting to reconsider its penalty system.

“Our penalties for AFKing rely too much on queue penalties (like when a player dodges in champ select). We should be using other more significant penalties more often,” design director at Riot Games Andrei “Meddler” Van Roon wrote.

Riot ran a post-game survey and out of all game-ruining behaviors, going AFK and intentional feeding are the most commonly frustrating for players. AFKing in game is so common that Riot is focusing on its detection algorithm to better punish the players who do it appropriately. One of the possible punishments is temporary bans from the game.

Riot looks to fix toxic behavior in League of Legends solo queue

Fixing solo queue requires more than just punishments. Right now, Riot takes into consideration the behavior in a single game and doesn’t consider the history of offending players. It leads to players abusing the system, since they know how far can they go before facing any consequence.

An improved detection algorithm should be capable of detecting when a player disconnects or starts feeding intentionally. Discovering these patterns is the key to punishing players that are wreaking havoc in solo queue.

The next step is the implementation of a report button in the champion select screen. This button should be used when a player holds hostage a role, locks in a troll pick, or threatens to feed. Riot plans to implement it with patch 10.14 scheduled on July 8, though if it isn’t ready by that date, it’ll be delayed to patch 10.15 on July 22.

Read Also

Esports Betting

These Are Our Betting Tips for the League Championship Series Week 4 Ben Boland The 2026 LCS Summer Split is in full swing, with the eight North American squads all vying for a chance to represent the region at this year's World Championship. With Worlds being on home soil, there is more than just a ticket to Worlds at stake. Each series in the regular season carries weight, as the standings will determine their seeding and potentially their fate in the playoffs. Week four ...

League of Legends

Caps To Be Announced As Third Inductee in the LoL Hall of Legends Hannan Mundia After Faker and Uzi were inducted into the Hall of Legends in 2024 and 2025 respectively, the European League of Legends player Caps will be the next to get the same treatment. League of Legends has been a cornerstone in the professional gaming scene for over a decade. In that time, a handful of players have managed to leave their mark for all future fans and fellow players to learn ...

Esports Betting

MLBB is the most-watched game from the EWC, and it’s hard to see another game beating it Michael Hassall The Esports World Cup 2026 has officially passed its midway point and viewership figures for the tournament have surpassed many expectations so far, as per Esports Charts. The viewership tracking site revealed new statistics for the event on Aug. 6, showcasing just how many games had set new records in viewership, including one name leading the way in views: Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. MLBB leads the viewership charts with the ...

League of Legends

LCK 2026 Rounds 3–4 Preview, Schedule, Predictions, and More Hannan Mundia 2026 LCK Rounds 3-4 are slated to start soon, and this preview highlights the schedule, our expert predictions, and everything else you need to know before watching. The LCK has been upside down recently. Teams that were considered absolute powerhouses are seemingly falling off, while previous underdogs have been causing upset after upset. 2026 LCK Rounds 3-4 are starting soon, and the big question here is which team will reign ...

League of Legends

LEC 2026 Summer split preview, schedule, predictions, and more Hannan Mundia The 2026 LEC Summer split will be the deciding split to determine which teams can make it to the World Championship, and this preview aims to highlight everything you need to know about it. It isn’t a stretch to say that the LCK and LCP are the only two competitive League of Legends regions actually pulling their weight currently. The LEC did show potential at the start of the year, ...

League of Legends

How is League of Legends Classic different from the modern version? Hannan Mundia League Classic brings the classic League of Legends gameplay and design from when the game first came out, but how is it different from the modern version? The modern League of Legends mode is arguably in its best state in terms of popularity, with a study even reporting that playing LoL can improve brain function. Over a decade of gameplay and multiple marketing tactics by Riot Games have bumped up ...

League of Legends

Best Champions for every role in League of Legends Classic mode Hannan Mundia League Classic sees the return of League of Legends Season 3, but which champions were deemed the best during that time? League of Legends has gone through a lot of changes since it first came out. While the map and item-related changes naturally impacted the game's state, so did the many champion nerfs, buffs, and reworks. Multiple champions played completely differently in Season 3 than they do now. Since League ...