The North American VALORANT scene has been rocked by more drama today with Evil Geniuses removing a high-profile player from its Game Changers roster following hateful comments that were contradictory to the values of the league.
The Oct. 13 announcement comes just days after the team defeated Version1 for the 2023 VCT GC Series Three title. EG has advised that they will collaborate with Riot Games regarding their participation in the GC Championship in São Paulo, Brazil later this year.
After being made aware of some recent comments that were “severely inappropriate, hateful and misogynistic” by a player on their Game Changer roster, they were promptly removed, citing those behaviors to have no place within the organization.
Although no player was mentioned by name, allegations recently surfaced against EG’s keenc, supported by evidence that matches the description. The allegations were all posted separately to Twitter on Oct. 11 within hours of each other.
One individual provided a video of their message history, where keenc allegedly makes comments hinting at the fact the user is underage and would be their “type” if they were older and physically active.
In a different post, keenc allegedly made attempts to convince another person to post “more thirst traps,” insinuating that they do it often and classifying it as “advice.” The same individual claims in the thread that keenc constantly tried to discuss sexual topics with them. Another case of this alleged behavior shows keenc pressuring someone to make inappropriate noises.
Keenc responded directly to these allegations in a now-deleted statement apologizing and showing remorse for their actions. “I’m disgusted about it… I hope I have moved past this and can do better”.
Keenc topped that stat chart throughout EG’s winning Series, alternating between Jett and Raze and finishing with a rating of 1.42 and over 300 ACS according to stats site vlr.gg. The GC World Championship begins on Nov. 28, meaning EG has a little over a month to find a new fifth before representing NA in Brazil.
Game Changers is a safe haven for women and those of marginalized genders. With the player’s removal from EG for the listed reasons, hopefully, the young scene can continue to nurture those values.
