VALORANT fandom demands Riot add harsher penalties for worst kind of players—but not everyone agrees

AFK gamers might want to think twice about queuing in VALORANT after rally cries from the community have begun demanding harsher penalties for early leavers.

At the moment, the punishments for AFK VALORANT players change depending on how frequently they commit these vile acts, but it’s clearly not enough for some angry teammates—according to a swelling chorus, Riot Games needs to crack the hammer harder.

A March 13 Reddit post saw one disgruntled player claiming that the repercussions “should be much harsher,” and a host of VALORANT players agreed.

Players flocked to Riot’s side for once, however, with some users explaining they can’t make the system harsher, as it’ll impact those who disconnect by mistake.

One player pointed out VALORANT “has too many DC issues for the penalty to be harsher.” An alternative, some suggested, would be to “buff remake” by giving players a few more rounds before it’s too late to stop the match.

Another player shared that sometimes they get stuck on the loading screen and the game thinks they’re AFK. To increase the punishment would be unfair to those kinds of situations, especially to those with weak internet connections. It’s a fair request too; players with internet drop outs shouldn’t be punished in the same manner as serial AFKers. Even updates can make a player disconnect, thus punishing them for no fault of their own.

It’s quite likely Riot keeps the system they have in place, as it seems to be working for a large portion of the VALORANT community for now, and only will time will tell if they take a second look at the punishments.