Valorant pros phox and w3ak banned for cheating: Each release statements

Like many games, especially in the FPS genre, Valorant has had problems with hackers since day one. Despite their aggressive anti-cheat technology, foul play still sneaks through, and now we know it has even affected professional tournaments.

The news came to light after “phox”, who has been competing with orgless American team Echo 8, announced that he would be taking a break from Valorant – to which Matt Paoletti, who works on anti-cheat at Riot, responded “If you come back, please don’t cheat next time”.

Echo 8 recently placed third in the EsportsDoug x eUnited Charity Clash, with phox ending the event with some incredibly “impressive” stats. Following the cheating allegations, phox’s teammate “w3ak” spoke out to defend him.

Despite initially denying the claims, both phox and w3ak soon admitted to cheating. This has helped them to reach Radiant status in ranked, as well as perform better in tournaments. They have each been banned and display no desire to return to Valorant.

Later on, phox posted a twitlonger statement, explaining the reasoning behind his actions. “I am/was a compulsive cheater” said the disgraced gamer. He revealed that he has been cheating across various titles for many years.

Phox cites boredom as the key factor in his decision to cheat. After grinding all day everyday and not making much progress, he immediately went back to his old ways. Concerningly, the banned player also added “it was very surprising to me how easy it was”.

The pair have now apologised, but conceded that they do not seek or expect forgiveness. Given that they cheated during a charity event, I don’t think that was happening anyway.

Cheating like this completely undermines the competitive integrity of an Esport. The community are rightfully outraged, and hopefully Riot can find ways to further prevent this happening in the future.