Valorant dev explains how Riot Games is dealing with smurfs
Valorant has a smurfing problem and Riot Games is firing on all cylinders to tackle it, a developer has explained.
It’s no secret that Valorant has a major smurfing problem. Riot Games has successfully dealt with cheaters compared to other FPS titles, but boosters seem to find loopholes in the system pretty easily. The issue has become a serious one recently, as lower queues become plagued with ace aimers from Diamond and Immortal ranks. Fortunately, Riot Games is well aware, and solutions are already in place, EvrMoar has revealed.
In a Reddit post, a player came up with an elaborate suggestion for Riot Games to rid the game of boosters. However, Valorant competitive designer EvrMoar explained that his recommended system is already in place to remove the smurfs.
“Our MMR system is split between your ‘Encounter’ MMR and your ‘Win/Loss’ MMR. Then, depending on your rank, we combine a percentage of each one to make your individual MMR! Then your MMR is used to determine your RR gains/losses,” EvrMoar said.
Reddit user Narwhal recommended that Riot eliminate the bad actors by changing the Rank Rating process. The player introduced Personal Performance Coefficient, a coefficient that decreases for every rank and determines the amount of RR you receive based on your personal performance. His solution revolved around how lower queues can be emptied by boosting good players with deserved RR. His suggestions were indeed top-notch since EvrMoar explained how Valorant is already doing it.
Valorant community discuss ways to deal with smurfing problem
Reddit user Narwhal recommended that Riot eliminate the bad actors by changing the Rank Rating process. The player introduced Personal Performance Coefficient, a coefficient that decreases for every rank and determines the amount of RR you receive based on your personal performance. His solution revolved around how lower queues can be emptied by boosting good players with deserved RR. His suggestions were indeed top-notch since EvrMoar explained how Valorant is already doing it.
The developer explained that it takes a few games for Riot to detect the rank of the person. While RR gains undoubtedly depend on your in-game performance, they reflect your Matchmaking rank mostly. Players gain and lose RR based on how much MMR they’ve garnered, a number that’s hidden. The developer gave the example of TenZ, who ranked up to Radiant only after 16 games.
This means no player can stay in the lower queues for long unless they purposefully throw the rounds. Riot Games would easily identify those crisp one-taps and boost a smurf to their deserved ranks in order to keep the queues clean. However, EvrMoar conceded that the smurf problem is worsening, and the developer is working on a fix.
While this issue can never be eliminated from the game, the developer is considering extreme majors like adding a Two-factor authentication to the game. However, it’s not their preferred solution since smurfs can easily invest money and generate more accounts.
Whatever the case, the developer is actively tackling the smurf problem on the backend.
Fariha Bhatti is a long-time gaming writer who loves competitive FPS games and slots with particularly fun themes. She got her start playing classic games developed by SNK, from legendary fighting game series The King of Fighters to challenging platform franchise Metal Slug. She now spends most of her time playing Valorant and Counter-Strike 2 while working her way through new slot releases to find her next favorite. Fariha has been published at PCGamesN, TalkEsport and ONE Esports.
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