Valorant players are frustrated with harsh ranking system

Olivia Richman Published 03/12/2020

Competitive Valorant players feel that it’s much too easy to lose rank in Riot Games’ tactical shooter.

There is a soft reset each competitive season, introduced in Act 2. A soft reset means that a player will be put into “abridged placements” for a series of three games. The matches determine their rank for the next competitive season, meaning players will be placed “slightly lower” than where they ended in the previous Act, according to Riot.

“Typically, your Match Rank will land a couple of tiers below where you ended the prior Act, but we’ll be increasing how heavily we weigh performance in your early games so you can quickly improve your matchmaking rank if you play well and win,” Riot developers explained.

When Act 3 came around, more players came forward with frustration over this rank reset, claiming that it was too easy to be “de-ranked.”

Valorant ranked reset

Competitive Valorant players upset with rank reset system

Players have come together to voice their growing concerns with Valorant’s rank reset flaws. Many players feel as though the placement matches at the start of each Act make it impossible to rank up, yet they noticed how easy it was to rank downwards.

Many competitive Valorant fans had similar experiences. One stated they were Platinum 2 in Act 2 and are now in Silver 3. They noted on Reddit that they don’t want to play as much because of this dramatic drop. Another player went from Platinum 1 to Gold 1 and then Iron 3, making them “demotivated and depressed.”

“It feels like I can never be good at a game that I care about,” the player added.

A third player said they were Platinum 1 and are now Gold 1, leaving them to “carry” their teammates if they want to move up the ranks at all.

“It’s miserable, can’t stand it,” the player stated.

Many in the Valorant community have theorized that Riot developers have made players drop so low each rank reset to make them “farm as many gameplay hours as possible.” It makes the game feel more like a grind, since they feel forced to play match after match in hopes of chasing their previous rank, much less ranking up.

As players continue to feel tilted and frustrated due to the rank reset, the Valorant community is waiting for answers from Riot developers. So far, the team hasn’t spoken up about the ongoing concerns from the competitive playerbase.

Olivia Richman

About Olivia Richman

Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.

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