Riot Games has delivered a decisive blow to the VALORANT esports scene, imposing significant penalties on Madelyn “malibu” Campos and James “Summertime” Edwards for violating VCT Game Changers regulations.

 https://twitter.com/valesports_na/status/1747393296148693032 

The narrative unfolded during the 2023 VALORANT Game Changers circuit when Noot Noot, an ascending team, ousted content creator Disguised Toast's squad. Now, more than three months after the controversial match that saw Noot Noot's disqualification, Riot's ruling has been unveiled: malibu faces a permanent ban from all Riot-sanctioned competitions, while Summertime grapples with a one-year ban.

Published on the VALORANT esports website on 16th January, the official competitive ruling shed light on the depth of malibu and Summertime's transgressions, centering around cheating and player verification breaches.

Malibu's ban is particularly severe due to her prior evasion of a hardware ban imposed by Riot's Anti-Cheat team. Additionally, she provided false information during the Game Changers verification, including an AI-generated profile photo. Summertime played a role in disseminating this deceptive information.

Following the disqualification, both players deactivated their social media accounts. Teammate Allison “xann” Angel resurfaced after Riot's ruling, emphasizing malibu's hardware ban circumvention. However, the ruling did not explicitly mention in-game enhancements, prompting xann to spotlight the verification process subversion.

While some argue that the players weren't directly cheating in-game, others contend that lying during verification is a form of cheating, sparking a divisive debate in the community.

The repercussions for malibu and Summertime come in the aftermath of Noot Noot's disqualification from the Game Changers event, leaving a bitter taste for their opponents.

In a twist of fate, a member of Noot Noot was found to have breached a competitive rule in their Oct. 5, 2023 match against Complexity GX3, resulting in a forfeit. Interestingly, Disguised Toast's VALORANT squad was eliminated by the same Noot Noot roster a day earlier.

Despite Disguised assembling a last-minute roster that showcased remarkable prowess, their journey in the 2024 Game Changers is cut short. Instead, reports suggest the team will seek a new home in the Asia-Pacific region, leaving fans to ponder the unforeseen twists in the ever-evolving VALORANT competitive landscape.