Shroud slams “garbage” ranked Valorant, dev confirm five stack queues

Senior Valorant developers have responded to mounting criticism from elite competitors like Michael “shroud” Grzesiek regarding fundamental issues with the current ranked structure. The announcement brings hope to players who’ve endured what many describe as fundamentally broken competitive experiences.

Competitive first-person shooters demand exceptional individual mechanics combined with seamless team synchronization. While raw aiming skill might secure numerous eliminations, converting those kills into round victories requires coordinated execution and strategic teamwork. This dependency on team dynamics makes the current high-tier ranked environment particularly challenging due to restrictive matchmaking parameters.

Multiple professional competitors, including Tyson “TenZ” Ngo, have voiced their dissatisfaction with the ranked ecosystem. Shroud echoed these sentiments during a recent broadcast, characterizing the current system as fundamentally flawed and frustrating for dedicated players.

“The ranked experience is fundamentally broken because of these duo queue limitations. This creates an unhealthy competitive dynamic that makes playing with random teammates incredibly unrewarding,” the streamer emphasized during his critique.

Valorant’s 2.02 update fundamentally altered high-level competitive dynamics by implementing strict party size limitations. Players ranked Diamond 3 and above can no longer form full five-player squads, restricted instead to duo partnerships for ranked progression. While these constraints were designed to prevent rank manipulation and boosting, they’ve simultaneously created a stagnant and frustrating environment for top-tier competitors.

Fortunately, the community’s vocal dissatisfaction prompted direct engagement from senior competitive designer EvrMoar, who confirmed that five-player queue functionality is actively being developed.

“Our team is engineering a competitive framework that supports five-stack team play, and we recognize the community’s desire for this feature. We’re simultaneously exploring interim solutions while building the comprehensive system overhaul. Unfortunately, we cannot provide specific timelines at this stage,” the developer clarified in his response.

Riot Games has intensified their focus on addressing smurfing concerns, as detailed in the recent May 6th Ask Valorant session. The development team acknowledged the growing prevalence of alternate accounts and committed to identifying the underlying causes. According to shroud’s analysis, expanding queue options would naturally reduce smurfing incentives throughout the ranked ecosystem.

That’s exactly what we needed to hear! Additionally, implementing meaningful incentives for competitive five-stack play would significantly diminish smurfing behaviors! 🙂

— Michael Grzesiek (@shroud)
May 15, 2021

Elite Valorant competitors frequently establish secondary accounts specifically to experience the game with full five-player squads. This practice creates imbalanced matchmaking scenarios where Diamond-level players infiltrate Gold-tier lobbies, making legitimate progression exceedingly difficult for lower-ranked participants.

The development team has verified that five-stack queue functionality remains a development priority, though specific implementation dates remain unconfirmed. The community should anticipate substantial ranked system enhancements in forthcoming updates designed to improve competitive integrity across all skill brackets.

Understanding the upcoming changes requires strategic preparation. High-ranked players should focus on developing flexible team coordination strategies that work across different queue sizes. The most successful competitors master adaptation to varying team compositions, which will become increasingly valuable as queue options expand.

Common Strategic Mistakes: Many players underestimate the importance of communication protocols in restricted queue environments. Establishing clear role assignments and developing backup strategies for when team coordination falters can dramatically improve ranked performance.

Advanced players should prioritize developing leadership skills and shot-calling abilities, as these become increasingly crucial in dynamic queue scenarios. Teams that master strategic flexibility will gain significant advantages when the new system launches.

For those struggling in the current system, consider reviewing our Class Guide to optimize agent selection for different team compositions.

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