- Fans have been complaining about the state of VALORANT’s ranked matchmaking
- Prominent streamer Shroud is very vocal about the inability of five high-ranked players to queue together
- Riot Games representative EvrMoar promised that coveted changes are worked on but didn’t specify a release date
Aiming to live up to fans’ expectations Riot Games has promised to work hard on finding a solution to VALORANT’s ranked matchmaking issues.
Ranked Mode’s Issues: Why Are Fans Unhappy?
Fans haven’t been exactly thrilled about the current state of VALORANT’s ranked matchmaking. The lack of fair balance and the team limitation at higher ranks are a recipe for fan disgruntlement. The changes that caused this unhappiness among fans were introduced in the recent 2.02 patch that dropped three days ago.
Michael “shroud” Grzesiek, a prominent Twitch streamer, has been quite vocal about the issues the game is facing. According to him, the ranked mode can be described as “hot garbage.” Shroud’s main issue is the team limitations for players with high skill levels: currently, all players whose ranking is above Diamond 3 can either queue alone or bring a single teammate.
It’s clear why many people have an issue with that: professional teams obviously would like to play together in order to improve their team compatibility and coordination. Even outside the esports demographics, players, in general, want to be able to play with their friends.
Spenser “Hiko” Martin from 100 Thieves is one of the main opponents of the aforementioned team limitations. According to Hiko, Riot Games should work on more balanced matchmaking instead of limiting whom players can queue together with. 100 Thieves’ player said that neither stomping nor getting stomped is an enjoyable and balanced experience.
Shroud and Hiko aren’t alone: most regular players have been demanding better matchmaking. Currently, VALORANT uses two rating systems: the ranked rating that players see and the internal matchmaking rating, which isn’t communicated to players but is used when the game matches people together. The latter should be definitely worked on to appease fans and provide for a healthier competitive community. Riot Games has promised updates will come but hasn’t set a deadline for them.
Riot Responds, Promises That Changes Are in the Works
Being a popular streamer, shroud soon attracted attention by a Riot employee. And it was none other than EvrMoar: VALORANT’s game designer himself. EvrMoar assured shroud that away for five-player teams to queue together in a way that keeps the game balanced is currently in the works. However, EvrMoar emphasized that such changes take a lot of time and asked shroud to be patient. In the meantime, short-term solutions will be implemented.
As the last patch dropped three days ago, we can assume that there will be at least a while until Riot manages to fully resolve the issue. However, the fact that the company vowed to do it is still reassuring to every person who doesn’t quite like how ranked is currently working. Riot Games has been in a constant struggle to maintain a healthy ecosystem and keep its games well-performing, clean of cheaters. While there have been some hurdles, the company has always tried to appease its players and provide them with the best competitive experience.
