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The Valorant Champions Tour (VCT) North America (NA) Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ) has been suspended due to various issues plaguing the event. Riot Games was not able to arrange travel for teams from Oceania that qualified for the event, hosted the event on virtual servers which led to a lag-filled experience, and some players participating in the LCQ received conflicting results when they were tested for COVID-19.
Despite trying to adhere to Los Angeles (LA) Country’s health guidelines for in-person events, the event was riddled with issues and the publisher will be shifting the event to an online format. All matches that have been completed in the event will be honored while the rest of the matches will resume in the near future once Riot Games completes the transition for the event.
Riot Games’ official statement on VCT NA LCQ being suspended
Riot Games revealed in an official statement that “out of an abundance of caution and with the health and safety of all involved being top of mind, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the event until further notice.” The publisher is navigating the current situation and is concerned about player and staff safety which is why the event will be transitioned into an online format.
While the Last Chance Qualifier events for other regions have been taking place without any reported hindrances, the NA LCQ was plagued by multiple issues. Earlier this week, many players including FaZe Clan player Andrej "babybay" Francisty received conflicting COVID-19 test reports and the affected players were barred from participating on stage.
The event was previously criticized for using virtual servers despite it being a LAN event. It led to a poor player experience and pro players complained about lag at the event. The publisher decided to use a remote server in case any players needed to be quarantined. The goal was for teams to continue to compete and not bring in a sub or be forced to forfeit. The publisher recognized that “the virtual server is not the same as playing on LAN; however, we are diligently working on improving the remote server experience throughout the competition.” Riot Games is currently working on addressing the issues and will be announcing more details on when the NA LCQ will continue following its suspension.
Sentinels and Team Envy have already qualified for Valorant Champions via circuit points. One more team will be joining the two teams to represent North America later this year at Valorant Champions through the VCT NA LCQ.
