Riot’s forthcoming FPS game,Valorant,has made quite the splash, withValorantdominating Twitchcharts shortly after the beta began its rollout. And while the competitiveCS:GOandOverwatchhybrid has proven immensely popular, that hasn’t kept it from one key piece of criticism— how it handles its anti-cheat software.
For those unaware,Valorantruns its anti-cheat softwareat system startup, meaning its always on— even if the game isn’t running. While that’s fairly common practice with FPS games, it did lead to some concern among fans, believing it may become a hotbed for system vulnerabilities. However, Riot is now allowing players to turn it off whenValorantisn’t running.
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In a Reddit post, a Riot employee elaborated on the change, which will now make the player’s computer display a system tray icon anytimeValorant’sVanguard anti-cheat is running. From there, players are free to disable the software, though they’ll need to reboot their PC before they can playValorantagain in order to restart the anti-cheat.
Players can also uninstall the anti-cheat software if they plan on rebooting their system multiple times before playingValorantagain. The game will automatically reinstall the anti-cheat the next time players launch the game, removing any worry about the software causing a system vulnerability, and allowing them to play the game as much as they wish.
It’s a change that many fans are sure to appreciate, and one that should allowValorant’s competitive esports sceneto flourish without cheaters. The game’s beta has been popular, but the transition from beta to full release will likely bring a new set of challenges for Riot, especially if it wants the game to have a future as a major esport.
Valoranthas banned cheaters, which means that there have already been a few ways to get around the anti-cheat software. Still, cheaters being caught is all one can really ask for in a competitive FPS game. There’s still a long road ahead forValorant,one that will likely mean competition between the other hero shooters flooding the market, butValorantseems to be in a solid position so far.
