Riot are already banning cheaters in Valorant's beta

There's always going to be a cheater where competition's involved, so it's no surprise that Riot's new CS:GO-like shooter Valorant has already seen a few. Just getting into the beta seems to be a competitive sport, let alone actually performing in-game once you're there. Riot say they've banned their first cheater from Valorant's beta and are anticipating more bans to come.

Riot's anti-cheat lead Paul Chamberlain said yesterday: "it sucks, but today we had to ban our first cheater." Chamberlain didn't elaborate on what Valorant's first recipient of the ban hammer had done to earn it. "I was hoping for a little more time before this fight kicked off but we're in it now and we're ready," he says.

Riot are certainly taking an active parenting approach to their new shooter. Valorant is breaking Fortnite's streaming records thanks to their beta key distribution system in which you can win a key via Twitch Drops while watching streams. Folks don't care much for getting lucky, it seems, so Riot have also had to ban key sellers and bots to free up beta spots for actual players.

Opinions on the CS:GO in Overwatch clothes shooter vary here at RPS. Contributor Cian Maher says that Valorant struggles to find its own identity. Meanwhile Matt says "Guns are better with wizards," adding that "I relish every chance to outsmart rather than outshoot, and Valorant gives me enough of them that I can see myself playing for a long time to come."

If you're lucky enough to have gotten into the beta the legit way, Ollie's got a handy Valorant weapons guide to help you stay sweaty.