VALORANT ranked changes planned for Patch 2.03 and beyond, including AFK penalties and relaxed group restrictions in low ranks

Despite the massive ranked adjustments in VALORANT Episode Two, Riot has more tweaks in store.

Senior designer Jon “EvrMoar” Walker discussed a myriad of ranked changes in today’s blog post slated for Patch 2.03 and Act II.

For Patch 2.03, which should deploy in two weeks, Riot will penalize ranked players who AFK in-game. These Rank Rating losses can exceed the maximum cap, leading to harsh consequences for griefing players.

Players’ Act Rank will also be determined by the highest triangle in your badge instead of your top nine wins. Even though you’ll still need to achieve nine ranked wins, your end of Episode reward will only apply to your highest triangle.

As for changes later down the line, EvrMoar outlined some Act II plans. Act-to-Act ranked resets will be less drastic, “making it easier for players to maintain rank.” Players can still expect a soft reset when switching Episodes, however.

Act II will also allot more time before letting players hit Radiant at the start of a season. You’ll even be able to hide your rank pre-game and in-game, alleviating some of the pressure you might get from your teammates. The rank will still be present in the end-of-game screen, though.

And lower ranks will have more lax group restrictions, letting you play competitively with friends despite a big rank disparity.

“We understand that many of you really want to group and play ranked with your friends despite their rank,” EvrMoar said. “The data says we have enough players in lower ranks to allow them to group up at wider rank disparities, while also maintaining fair matchmaking.”

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