Riot says Valorant esports ‘will not mirror the League of Legends model’
Riot is looking to the community to run small and medium-sized tournaments.
Riot Games’ latest first-person shooter has piqued the interest of many streamers and esports personalities since the game’s closed beta was launched. The next step for the game will be establishing its esports ecosystem, which Riot has finally detailed in ablog post.
According to the Valorant’s Senior Director of Global Esports, Whalen “Magus” Rozelle, they have three core principles: competitive integrity, accessibility, and authenticity. They explained that they want “all aspiring pros to have a fair shot at reaching the highest levels of play through merit-based competition.”
Riot Games has announced their initial vision for VALORANT esports:• It will not mirror League of Legends• Looking at 3rd party organization to start community run tournaments• Riot will sanction official events with organizations
Riot Games has also announced that they’re focusing on partnerships with players, tournament organizers, content creators, and developers according to theirCommunity Competition Guidelines document. Valorant competitions will have three tiers: small, medium, and major tournaments.
Small tournaments can be organized by players, PC cafes, or community organizers and will have cash prizes of US$10,000 or less. For medium tournaments, they can be organized by middle-tier businesses, brands, esports organizations, or influencers and will have a total prize pool that does not exceed US$50,000. Major tournaments will be organized by major esports event organizers like ESL, Dreamhack, and OGN, and will be part of the global competitive ecosystem.
Riot has yet to announce a timetable or schedule for their planned esports ecosystem, but they’ve released the blueprint for Valorant’s competitive scene. Withdifferent esports organizations announcing their player rostersandhosting their own Valorant tournaments, expect to see more events in the near future.
READ MORE:Here’s why Riot says Valorant will have ‘the best network conditions in the industry’
