The Valorant SEA Games 2023 grand final has been thrown into disarray due to suspicions of bug abuse by the Singapore national team. The match was initially set to be contested between the Singapore and Indonesia national teams, who had advanced to the final after defeating Vietnam and the Philippines in the semifinals, respectively.
However, during the second round of the grand final, which was being played on the Split map, the Indonesian team requested an extremely lengthy timeout, delaying the start of the game by nine hours. The reason behind the timeout soon emerged on social media, as multiple accounts alleged that the Singapore team had exploited the Cypher bug, which allowed them to peek the positions of opposing players from difficult angles.
Valorant commentators and analysts weighed in on the issue, with some providing detailed information about the bug in the game. While it has not been confirmed that Singapore did exploit the bug during the grand final, the allegations have cast a cloud over the entire tournament.
According to Muhammad “Frostmind” Rafi Diandra, the assistant coach of the Indonesian national team, who contacted the match supervisor via Discord, the bug exploit is deemed a violation and may be subject to sanctions.
A shameful conclusion
By 8:15 AM SGT, the officials have decided that the second round would not be replayed as requested by the Indonesian team. According to reports from Executive Board of Esports Indonesia (PBESI), the match organisers eventually saw the Singapore team’s exploit of the bug as a “minor breach”, thus no punishment or penalty was necessary. The Indonesian national team, outraged by the decision, opted to forfeit the grand final, crowning Singapore the winner of the competition.
The situation in SEA Games 2023 is a blow to the Valorant community, which has been looking forward to the grand final between Singapore and Indonesia. Both teams had performed well throughout the tournament, with their matchup predicted to be the most intense. However, the allegations of bug abuse have dampened the excitement surrounding the match.
