Concerns are mounting within the VALORANT community as players continue to voice concerns about poor conditions during VCT EMEA Stage 1, which has been severely impacted by persistent technical issues and long downtime. The most detailed criticism came from esports veteran Nikita "Derke" Sirmitev, who highlighted the poor hardware quality and slow response times at Riot Games. Stage 1 has suffered from repeated technical outages over the past several weeks, impacting the flow of competition and increasing pressure on players and streamers. The problems culminated last week during the group stage match between Team Liquid and Movistar KOI, when a downtime of over 30 minutes forced officials to move the ongoing match on the Lotus map to a new server. In an attempt to address server instability, Riot temporarily moved matches to online servers, but this change has led to new issues, including high ping for players. Daniel Ringland, Head of VALORANT Esports, EMEA at Riot Games, shared a statement and apologized for the difficulty of addressing these issues during the season. He said, "Resolving this issue is a very complex challenge, and we're in the middle of the regular season, as the studio is used almost every day, leaving us little time to take down systems and fully investigate." Ringland also confirmed that a comprehensive investigation will take place between the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs, scheduled for May 8. Derke responded critically, noting that players have been reporting these issues since the start of VALORANT's franchise system in 2023, but little has changed. He explained that there are ongoing issues with PC optimization, varying settings, and poor monitor quality, and that players are often told to "be patient" despite no tangible improvement. He said, "PCs are not optimized, settings are constantly changing, and most technical interruptions are due to severe game lag. The support team is checking the situation, and whether they notice the issue or not, we continue playing. There are no fixes." He also expressed his disappointment with Riot's decision to cancel in-person attendance for Wednesday matches, explaining that this decision impacts new players making their debut in top-tier tournaments and fans who traveled to support their favorite teams. Following Derke's statement, other players echoed similar concerns. Retired Sentinels star Tyson "TenZ" Ngo indicated that Riot's disregard for player feedback was one of the main reasons behind his decision to retire. Gentle Mates player Thomas "kAdavra" Johner criticized the quality of equipment, while NAVI player Kyrylo "ANGE1" Karasov blamed the logistical challenges of sharing an arena with League of Legends events, which reduces the opportunity to properly adjust equipment between matches. With the playoffs approaching, Riot Games announced the creation of a player council to improve communication and address player concerns. Ringland also promised significant equipment upgrades later this year. In contrast, former Team Liquid coach and VALORANT celebrity Connor "Sliggy" Blomfield has proposed a more immediate solution. During a co-stream of the VCT EMEA tournament, Sliggy suggested moving the entire group stage matches online, with offline playoffs reserved for the playoffs. He emphasized that this would provide a more stable competitive environment and reduce the costs associated with maintaining the Riot Games Arena during the regular season. As the situation evolves, all eyes will be on Riot Games to see how they address these critical issues in the coming weeks.
