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Valorant has banned over 10,000 cheaters according to anti-cheat engineer Phillip Koskinas. Riot Games’ FPS title, like many other competitive games, has faced its fair share of cheaters. That’s where Riot Games’ anti-cheat system, Vanguard, comes in. Vanguard is an essential part of Valorant’s existence by blocking cheats before the player has time to run the game. This system has been called highly invasive by players, but Valorant responded to the complaints by allowing users to turn off or uninstall Vanguard. In addition to these measures, they also added a feature to see when Vanguard is running in the background. Nonetheless, the bans continue — sometimes as “Soulbans.”

Valorant “Soulbans” cheaters

The first wave of bans came earlier this month according to Koskinas. The Vanguard developer informed us with colorful language that there were 8,873 fewer players using cheats.

After the initial wave of bans, Vanguard commented on its commitment to anti-cheat. “Even though this is just closed beta, we’ve promised that we’re going to be heavily committed to anti-cheat. This ban wave is only the beginning. We’re going to ensure the highest standard of competitive integrity in Valorant.”

Shortly after, Valorant implemented “Soulbans” as an additional precaution for cheaters. According to Koskinas, if you’ve cheated before, all of your past, present, and future accounts will also be suspended, though when Valorant officially launches, some cheaters may be given one last chance to reform. Even with Vanguard and Soulbans active, some cheaters have still managed to make their way into Valorant. Another ban wave removed 1,600 more players from the game. That brings the total to over 10,000 players banned.

Caught on camera

Popular Twitch streamer Spencer “Hiko” Martin encountered one of these cheaters while streaming. The cheater had also been streaming at the time and had their Twitch account terminated. In the clip on Reddit, you can see Hiko visibly frustrated, even with the score tied up 8-8. Valorant then kicks Hiko and alerts him that a hacker has been detected in his game. If you encounter a cheater while in-game, a similar screen should appear.

For more Valorant coverage, stay tuned to Daily Esports.