If you’ve been wondering what all the recent news about Pro City has been, then wonder no longer, we’re here to explain it all.
Pro City has been all over our social media for days, but what is the VALORANT Pro City and how did it come about? Well you don't need to silently ponder these questions, we're here with a run down on everything you need to know.
What is VALORANT Pro City?
Having began in January 2023, Pro City is the brainchild of Tarik "Tarik" Celik. In essence, it is essentially a Discord server for the top pro players and pro content creators to find ranked games. It is known to have over one hundred and twenty members at present in order to create ten person custom lobbies.
The Discord server which Riot Games has confirmed is fine; effectively adds another level of ranked play to VALORANT by creating custom lobbies for players and creators who would otherwise struggle to find matches.
The discord was created as way to create an environment where real competitive play could be practiced outside of the sometimes toxic ranked lobbies. Even in major regions, dodges, hackers, and thrown rates in the top ranks are high.
Within a Twitter post on Pro City, Tarik told followers that Pro City is all about "maintaining the level of play" and that meant there was a "strict criteria" in order to be invited to the server. Many of the members of Pro City are also top pro players with some top content creators as well.
All members are from across the North America region. This reportedly includes Michael "neT" Bernet who plays for the Guard and Eric "Kanpeki" Xu who formerly played on Sentinels.
But critics say that Pro City is creating an unmoderated exclusive environment: A clique that you could potentially be excluded from if you're not in the good books of Tarik or other pros. There's the potential for gatekeeping, and other harmful behaviour, all hidden behind a members-only discord.
While ranked is not the ideal environment, at least it's equally bad for all players. Taking high-ranked players out of the ranked pool also means that it's harder for new talent to develop, as they just won't get to face the big names.
What did Riot have to say about Pro City?
While for some the idea of Pro City may seem deeply unfair, Tarik had stressed that he would follow Riot’s guidance and close the server if Riot were not happy with it.
However, Riot have told Tarik that they have no issue with the server and have allowed it to continue. In a stream while playing; Tarik informed viewers that he had spoken to Riot. Who had confirmed to him that they “don’t plan on taking this down.” Having also said they were open to the idea of “prizes” being introduced.
Where can I watch Pro City?
In order to watch game play from Pro City, you will need to tune into the Twitch streams of those who are part of the server. This includes the streams for Tarik and neT. You can view the list of full players via the leader board, and follow their streams to see their matches.
To view the leader board for Pro City, you can access it through the website and see regular updates; check back regularly to see if your favourite player is in the lead.