Cloud9 Vanity Retires from VALORANT Citing Poor Ranked Experience

Anthony "vanity" Malaspina, the former IGL for Cloud9’s VALORANT roster, recently announced his departure from professional VALORANT. Sharing his decision on his X account, vanity explained that a key factor was the diminishing enjoyment in playing VALORANT’s ranked mode, which he described as having become a discouraging environment.

In his farewell statement, he emphasized a lifelong dedication to competition beyond monetary motivations and admitted he didn’t want to continue if his passion had faded. Moving forward, vanity expressed plans to explore Counter-Strike 2 through streaming and, eventually, to return to competitive gaming if he regains confidence in his skill level.

Cloud9’s decision to part ways with vanity three months earlier, following the end of their 2024 season, may have influenced his trajectory, but it was the state of ranked play that ultimately solidified his choice.

The Ranked Issues Impacting VALORANT

vanity’s departure has sparked discussions within the VALORANT community about the problems plaguing the ranked experience. While ranked should ideally be a practice ground for aspiring pros, many players—both professional and amateur—feel it has turned into a frustrating environment that negatively impacts competitive integrity.

One player shared their frustration with ranked resets, saying, “The worst part for me is the season resets. I was a few games off of plat... went 2-3 in my placement games the next act and got put into silver 2.” They criticized the reset system as a means to artificially increase player engagement, forcing them to repeatedly “grind back” up the ranks without enjoyment. Others echoed this, pointing to unpredictable teammates and general toxicity that hinder the ranked experience.

Image Source: Screenshot from Reddit

In higher ranks, like Radiant, players reported issues with stream snipers, people who dodge if they see a stacked enemy team, and people who don’t even try. The environment at the top levels has degraded to what some describe as a “showdown of aimers,” with little to no emphasis on team strategy or coordination—essential skills in professional VALORANT.

As if all of this wasn't enough, the ranked queue has also been plagued with "throwers' for quite some time now. For reasons known only to them, these players will join competitive matches, and then proceed to purposefully throw the game. This can be done in various ways, such as giving the enemy team information, appearing to be AFK, but not actually being AFK so the match can't be remade, to even feeding kills to the enemy team.

An Overemphasis on Kills and Individual Play

Further criticisms have been directed at VALORANT’s ranking incentives, which many argue favor kill-heavy play styles over teamwork. “Riot incentivizes kills, so everyone just locks Reyna, Jett... there’s no real team utility,” another player pointed out, noting that the current meta encourages players to focus on individual performance rather than strategic team play. This imbalance has led to games filled with duels and solo engagements rather than coordinated efforts to win rounds together.

One of the most debated issues is VALORANT's rank model, which some players argue artificially maintains a 50% win rate. “Forcing pre-determined losses that heavily skew the MMR of players who can’t 1v5” creates a system that prioritizes individual impact over teamwork, according to some fans. This perceived imbalance has made ranked play an uphill battle, especially for players who focus on team-oriented strategies.

Image Source: Screenshot from Reddit

vanity’s retirement highlights a broader issue within VALORANT’s ranked environment that has left a sour taste for many players. As the conversation grows, the pressure mounts on Riot Games to reevaluate the ranked system to better support team-based play and foster a positive experience for both pros and everyday players. For now, the ranked ladder remains a polarizing aspect of the game, one that has cost VALORANT a dedicated pro in vanity.

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Featured Image Source: Tina Jo/Riot Games

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