Home Valorant executive producer responds to streamer’s harassment allegations

Valorant executive producer responds to streamer’s harassment allegations

tl;dr

  • A harassment incident in Valorant has gotten the attention of the game’s top executive
  • Riot Games’ Anna Donlon said the company was committed to making their games a safe space for all players.
  • Harassment via voice chat in-game is difficult to root out and ban, however.

The executive producer of Riot Games’ Valorant has posted about harassment in the game via social media. Anna Donlon took to social platform X to address the concerns that have been raised in the community after a prominent streamer received a threat of physical violence in a Valorant gaming session.

Valorant exec speaks out

In the post, Donlon said, “I’m sorry for not posting sooner, but please know I haven’t missed a word. This has been the top thing on my mind (a lot of our minds) since yesterday.”

Valorant News responded to the post, saying, “Just know that a lot of people truly enjoy, and love the game you and your team have created. Some just wanna feel safe, and respected while doing so.”

The streamer in question was Taylor Morgan. She posted on her X page the abusive language and the threats amid a desperate plea for support from Riot:

Donlon committed to acknowledging the severity of online harassment and abuse but asked for time to gather her thoughts before taking necessary action.

She said “It’s important to me that we lead with action first, so until we’d actually pressed the right buttons and made some necessary internal changes, I didn’t want to tweet out empty condolences when it’s on us to do the hard work here. I want to share some of my thoughts on the topic of player behavior in gaming at some point, but want to pull those thoughts together first.”

Online harassment in gaming

Harassment and abuse in games has been something gaming developers have sought to rule out using multiple approaches. Temporary bans and the shut down of accounts can be applied, but it is increasingly difficult to capture audio harassment and identify it to a particular account.

We reported that Activision used artificial intelligence (AI) to root out over 2 million toxic voice chats in Call of Duty. Activision said of the landmark figure: “More than 2 million accounts have seen in-game enforcement for disruptive voice chat, based on the Call of Duty Code of Conduct.”

It remains to be seen if Valorant will enforce a similar way of detecting and responding to threatening or abusive behavior, but we await Donlon and Riots’ further action on the topic that they have publicly stated they are serious about.

Image: Riot Games.

About ReadWrite’s Editorial Process

The ReadWrite Editorial policy involves closely monitoring the tech industry for major developments, new product launches, AI breakthroughs, video game releases and other newsworthy events. Editors assign relevant stories to staff writers or freelance contributors with expertise in each particular topic area. Before publication, articles go through a rigorous round of editing for accuracy, clarity, and to ensure adherence to ReadWrite's style guidelines.

Brian-Damien Morgan
Tech Journalist

Brian-Damien Morgan is an award-winning journalist and features writer. He was lucky enough to work in the print sector for many UK newspapers before embarking on a successful career as a digital broadcaster and specialist. His work has spanned the public and private media sectors of the United Kingdom for almost two decades. Since 2007, Brian has continued to add to a long list of publications and institutions, most notably as Editor of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, winning multiple awards for his writing and digital broadcasting efforts. Brian would then go on to be integral to the Legacy 2014,…

Get the biggest tech headlines of the day delivered to your inbox

    By signing up, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy. Unsubscribe anytime.

    Tech News

    Explore the latest in tech with our Tech News. We cut through the noise for concise, relevant updates, keeping you informed about the rapidly evolving tech landscape with curated content that separates signal from noise.

    In-Depth Tech Stories

    Explore tech impact in In-Depth Stories. Narrative data journalism offers comprehensive analyses, revealing stories behind data. Understand industry trends for a deeper perspective on tech's intricate relationships with society.

    Expert Reviews

    Empower decisions with Expert Reviews, merging industry expertise and insightful analysis. Delve into tech intricacies, get the best deals, and stay ahead with our trustworthy guide to navigating the ever-changing tech market.