Offensive Valorant player names are being forced to change

Riot Games is taking a firm stance on toxicity and unsportsmanlike conduct in Valorant. This ranges from players being disrespectful in chat, to cheaters abusing gameplay, and now, to offensive gamertags. Valorant informed players via Twitter that a respectful environment is one of its top priorities and there’s no place in the game for offensive player names.

From now on, any player that is deemed to have an offensive Valorant player name will be forced to change their Riot ID the next time they log in to the game.

What constitutes an offensive player name?

According to the series of Tweets from the Valorant team, an offensive name is one that violates the game’s Code of Conduct. You don’t need to go and read the entire document, inappropriate or offensive names are obvious to everyone.

Baddies be gone: swifter justice will be served on reports for offensive player names that violate our Code of Conduct. Think hate speech, slurs, etc. The account of a reported player will then go through an automated check.

— VALORANT (@PlayVALORANT) September 22, 2020

So, names that are hateful towards other races, sexes, or sexual orientations are not allowed. Names that contain offensive language will not be allowed. If your name demeans or disrespects another person for whatever reason, it will not be allowed. You would hope that players wouldn’t use such disrespectful language at all, let alone in their names. At least someone is taking a stance against it. This type of behavior has been rampant in the gaming scene for far too long.

You can help

At the beginning of September, Paul “Arkem” Chamberlain took to the game’s blog to encourage players to report cheaters and explain how it helps. This reporting system is invaluable to the Valorant team in its continuous battle against cheaters. You can also use the report system to inform Riot of an offensive Valorant player name. But don’t stop there, make sure you report toxic behavior and offensive language in-game.

If the account alerts our filter for disruptive names, then they will be forced to change their Riot ID the next time they log in to the Riot Client. This is just another step of many we’re taking to make VALORANT truly welcome for all.

— VALORANT (@PlayVALORANT) September 22, 2020

The final tweet from Valorant suggests that more measures will be put into place to ensure a welcome environment for all players. So, it’s time for everyone to clean up their acts.

Valorant is a free-to-play, hero-based tactical shooter from Riot Games. It is available for download on PC from the Valorant website.