Valorant players create simple idea to avoid solo queue problems

Following Riot’s announcement that they would not be implementing a solo queue playlist into Valorant’s Rated mode, players have taken it upon themselves to find a happy medium.

Riot’s tactical shooter is making waves in the realm of esports, even in its closed beta. As the beta matures, more and more players are moving into the Valorant space, which has had a knock-on effect on competitive play.

Players are flooding Valorant’s Rated mode in a bid to climb the ranks and mix it with the very best in their region. But, according to some players, the matchmaking system is flawed.

Riot Games

There are eight ranks, with budding players striving to achieve the coveted Valorant rating.

In their most recent update (Patch 0.50), Riot stated: “If you are playing solo or with smaller group sizes, we’ve worked to make it so our matchmaking will favor placing players against similar premade team sizes.”

• Read more: Riot Games respond to major Valorant hit reg issues

Yet following a lack of support for a dedicated solo queue playlist, plenty of players (including some of the community’s biggest names) have slammed Riot’s decision, with Rod ‘Slasher’ Breslau describing it as “imperative for a truly fair competitive experience.”

With that in mind, ‘Safwanish’ devised the perfect solution — a ‘stay with team’ option for those who struggle to find a five stack of teammates.

Riot Games / Dexerto

Staying with teammates would greatly increase your chances of ranking up, given how Valorant assess progress to your rank.

Riot’s rationale for not pursuing a separate solo queue playlist is to encourage playing as a team — as they believe this to be a “major component in your overall mastery of the game.”

• Read more: Riot Games dev provides update on Valorant FPS issues

Granting players an option to vote on whether they’d like to play together again would promote Riot’s message, while also mitigating the effects of the current matchmaking system, which heavily favors premade teams.

This would be especially useful in regions such as Europe, where there are often more barriers to overcome that can hinder team chemistry (there are over 200 languages spoken on the continent, for example).

So finding allies that play the right Agents, speak the same language, have a similar MMR, and above all, have fun playing together, would be made much easier with the introduction of this simple feature.