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A Valorant women's team called Team Fallacy has been accused of cheating in their game during the Astral Clash Last Chance Qualifiers last week. Organized by Gen.G and Galorants, Astral Clash is one of the premier female-centered tournaments in the game. One of the qualifying teams is currently under investigation for suspected account sharing. The TLDR from the report states:
"mars from Fallacy had her boyfriend ex-TSM FTX Payen to play on her account during an official so that they would qualify for a LAN tournament."
As per the document, mars (one of the players on Team Fallacy) is being accused of having someone else compete in the event in her place. According to the evidence, she had her partner and ex-TSM FTX Payen play in her stead. The document provides an in-depth comparison between the game settings of the two accused to establish guilt. Tournament authorities are yet to comment on the situation.
Team Fallacy Valorant pro mars accused of letting her boyfriend Payen play on her behalf
The report was made public on July 25, just after the LCQs ended with Team Fallacy bagging a qualifying spot for the main event to be held in August. The allegations leveled against the player are quite serious and, if true, would require a change in the official lineup going into the main Astral Clash event next month.
Various esports personalities have spoken on the issue, with many in the female and non-binary community talking about the bad press their ilk will face as a result of this incident. The document is quite thorough and cross-references mars and her boyfriend's keybinds, minimap settings, frame rate, and playstyles to build a case against her.
The document also alleges that the clip mars posted on Twitter which showed her clutching a round against Dignitas in the event is fake, and it brings up screenshots of previous clips from both mars and Payen as evidence. They accuse Payen of being the player because Sova's drone ability in the clip is bound to 'C' while mars is known to use the keybind 'F' for the ability.
The discrepancy in framerates is also noteworthy, and mars supposedly used to get lower framerates than what the clips from the tournament indicate. Valorant in-game minimaps can also be changed, and the report also notes a discrepancy there, ultimately concluding that it was Payen who must have been playing instead of his girlfriend.
Social media reacts to the allegations
Twitter is abuzz after notable personalities in the Valorant community posted about the incident. Many feel that the document is correct in its accusations and have already condemned the player. Female Valorant streamers and esports professionals have noted that incidents like these fuel sexist narratives in the video gaming industry:
Riot Games and Astral Clash organizers are yet to announce anything pertaining to this case, and it is important not to jump to conclusions. As pointed out by many esports personalities, however, incidents like these give the women's esports communities a bad name.
