Oops! I did it again: The Guard fails to secure VCT Americas 2024 league
In the three years since its release, Riot’s tactical FPS Valorant has cemented itself as a Global phenomenon. Compared to its competitors, Valorant is truly global with multiple regions effectively competing for its most glorious titles. The latest edition of Valorant Champions, the most prestigious international tournament, saw sixteen teams from four regions and twenty-four countries competing for the big prize, something previous FPSs failed to achieve. And each of these minor regions brings something to the table. The Turkish Valorant brings aim, SEA Valorant is known for its aggression, Chinese Valorant for the enigmatic ZmjjKk and North American Valorant for, well, Drama. One organization has been amazing at this and it is The Guard. Notoriously laying off multiple employees overnight, somewhat like a late Valentine's day surprise, The Guard is once again front and center of drama. Now as an early Thanksgiving present, they failed to secure the VCT Americas spot that their Valorant team fought hard to earn.
The Guard Valorant Journey:
The Guard entered the Valorant scene in late 2021 with valyn, neT, psalm, Sayaplayer (Spyder), JonahP and mCe as the coach. In 2022, Trent joined the team replacing Psalm in early 2022. The young team that wasn’t around for long made an insane run to win the VCT North America stage 1 challengers 2022. They failed to make a deep international run but throughout the year were a major threat. After the season concluded, the coach and all the Guard players transitioned to inactive roles.
With The Guard failing to get “franchised”, the players had to look for offers from other teams. Cloud9 acquired the Coaching duo of mCe and qpert and Sayaplayer left for T1. The rest of the Guard with NRG’s JoshRT and tex became the new “The Guard”. The new roster dominated the Challengers and made its way to the top again by winning the VCT Americas Ascension 2023. Through hardwork and determination, the players and coaching staff, amidst all the layoff drama, earned their spot in Tier 1.
The Guard debacle:
Winning the Ascension meant “The Guard” had to fill up paperwork and they’d get the two year stint at the VCT Americas. Obviously, compared to the previous screening process, the promotion process was lenient. The whole idea behind the promotion was to reward teams based on their talents, their “competitive merit”. However it was apparently not easy at all. As The Guard failed to comply with the Valorant team participation agreement and as a result “The Guard will not be participating in VCT Americas 2024 League”.
The Guard technically outdid their previous surprise layoff by making an even bigger mess this time. Players who had been working diligently to secure their spot based on talent alone will now need to search for new teams. Obviously, these are talented players and will surely find new homes in other orgs. But the fact that winning Ascension did not guarantee a spot for them is completely unfair. These players put their blood, sweat and tears into the game. They secured the NA Challengers playoffs, Ascension league, the Ascension playoffs and then won the trophy. And instead of a reward, these players get stuck with finding teams that’d accommodate them.
Who’s really at fault?
The Guard’s management is definitely at fault but so is Riot Games. Despite claiming the spot is for talent, the organization was leading the talks. This has to be a mismanagement from Riot’s side too. The Guard definitely becomes the most hated esports organization in history with their amazing bi-annual surprises but what does this say about Riot’s promotion league?
After claiming ascension being an alternative approach to select teams on competitive merit which technically has to mean the players and the staff.Riot communicated with the organization instead of the players themselves. While the player's definitely hold the competitive merit, Riot chose the organization as a spokesperson for the players and the staff. Unfortunalty for the guard players, their spokeperson isn't known for having their employees' best interest at heart.
From Riot’s perspective, the organization represent the player and thus they did their part. But then what about the “competitive merit” claim, what about the players and staff who worked hard throughout the year and earned their spot in the top? The decision obviously does not affect either Riot Game or the Guard but the players and the staff. The players might and will find teams that’d readily accept them but then what were their efforts for?
This also puts a question mark on F/A teams. What if they fail to find a sponsor? What about the future where organizations just decide to swap out players or just do what The Guard did? If Riot wants a smooth Ascension process, they need to implement checks and prioritize the players, rather than focusing solely on organizations that may not have the players' best interests at heart.
What should be a resolution here?
The tweet also mentions, Riot will not promote any team in Americas. Which makes sense as promoting the runner-up would be unfair for “The Guard” players.
Obviously in the case of the Guard, the best case scenario will be allowing the players to play under a different banner. But that’s up to Riot. The situation has made the community angry. The news has devastated the players and the staff and rightfully so. They had a guaranteed spot to play in Tier 1. And they find out they don’t have it anymore via Twitter.
Leave it to The Guard to communicate with their employees!!
For the Long term, Riot needs to prioritize players and staff for Ascensions. If their current organization fails to comply, Riot should find a way to allow players to explore thier options. Moreover, Riot Games should implement checks, so no organization can ruin the players' chances. While the players will likely find new teams, this was a major failure. Especially on the Guard’s part as the players found it via Twitter. The Guard Valorant will likely not be together again.
Valorant esports right now might seem like the worst place to be, but that doesn’t mean it lacks good people. A great example of such good people is Disuised Toast, who readily agreed to sign the players. Under the Disguised banner, the players can rightfully claim what's thiers. Obviously Disguised might not be ready for the expenses but it is definitely one option Riot can consider. There are legal processes in check but definitely Riot can find a way here. Right now, there is a petition on Twitter where the community urges Riot to let the ex-guard play together under a new banner.
And until Riot replies we have to wait and just flame The Guard.