Total Shorty Kills
The AFK Problem in Valorant
Gabriel Ionica
09/28/2020
If there is one problem that has been, and still is, prevalent in competitive Valorant, it’s away-from-keyboard (AFK) players. Players going AFK in the middle of a game has been happening since the beta and according to Reddit, it doesn’t seem to be stopping. But why?
One of the main causes in our opinion is the lack of harsh punishment. As it stands, the only known punishment for being AFK is a competitive timeout that increases based on repeat offenses.
The Problem with this AFK Punishment
That is nowhere near enough. If the punishment is just not being able to play Valorant for an hour, they can just go play something else for that hour and then return. This also screws over the remaining players on the team. They are a player down and have to either play the 4v5 or surrender and lose more ELO. Apart from increasing the competitive queue penalty, Riot should also have a rank penalty for AFK-ers to hopefully deter them from repeat offenses. There are also some things that Riot could do to make life easier for the team they left behind. Having one Ultimate orb extra after being 1 teammate down is simply not enough.
One common thing that games like CS:GO do is to have a bot take the place of the AFK player after they get kicked from the game. The first player that dies can then take control of that bot. It’s not ideal, as the bot usually doesn’t buy the best items, but it’s better than nothing. Another idea to run with the bot idea is to be more lenient with the ELO loss for teams.
What do you think of the current AFK penalty in Valorant? How would you change it? As usual, remember to follow us at Run it Back and join our Discord for all your latest news, extensive guides, and exclusive interviews in the world of Valorant.
