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Over the past two years, Riot Games' tactical shooter Valorant has grown to be one of the biggest in the genre. However, like all the other popular competitive shooters in the market, Valorant too faces the problem of smurfs and cheaters.
Smurfs (players who intentionally queue against lower ELO competitors) are proving to be quite the issue for players in lower skill lobbies, and the developers have taken note.
The developers have stated that they will be taking steps to fix this problem with the upcoming patch 5.01. The testing phase for the all new smurf detection functionality will begin on July 11, 2022.
For the time being, the smurf detection system will only be released in a single region for testing, and will soon be out for the other areas once its ready.
Valorant's upcoming patch and smurf detection system could be a godsend for casual players
Smurfing in Valorant has been an annoyance for quite some time. Queues in Silver to Gold matches are quite frequently ruined by smurf players that tear through the entire lobby. Much like CS: GO and Rainbow Six Siege, Riot's tactical shooter isn't free of this problem.
Players smurf in lobbies where games are easier and they don't have to face a challenge. While they have a great time, the opponents usually end up frustrated with the unfair matchmaking experience.
The smurf detection functionality
Riot games have stated that their upcoming patch 5.01 will include an all-new smurf detection functionality that will only work for the North American region for now.
The developers want to make sure that everything related to this feature is working correctly before they release the patch globally. This whole new feature against smurfing could mean a total change in matchmaking.
This addition to the game's smurf detection system is designed to help new players. Players with new accounts are going to get matched against players with the correct skill level more accurately, and matchmaking will be much faster than before.
This means that the chances of new players with low-level accounts going up against smurfs will be significantly reduced. This is going to be extremely helpful for new players as it is essential for them to grab hold of the game's mechanics, and this gets significantly more difficult when matched against players who are leagues ahead in playtime.
The new feature could also mean a more consistent rank climb for new players, as the chances of new accounts now getting stuck on a particular rank for too long will become significantly lower with this feature.
The smurf problem seems to increase with each new Episode and Act in Valorant. A new feature like this is a step in the right direction by the developers.
