The Valorant community is known for its witty banter and no-holds-barred jokes, but one thing is clear: jokes about mental health aren’t taken lightly.
A recent moment saw G2’s attempt at humor over Sentinels’ defeat backfire following a joke shared on the team’s X account. The post contained a picture of an emoji pointing a G2 bundle gun at its mouth, which many perceived as a tasteless jab at mental health problems.
The banter was sparked by Sentinels’ strings of bad luck which knocked them out of VCT Americas Stage 1 so early. Considered one of the best in the world following an impressive run during Masters Madrid a few months ago, the Reds surprisingly lost their rhythm and struggled to break through the group stage. Sentinels eventually ended up at the bottom of the Alpha group, tied with NRG Esports with 3 victories and 3 defeats.
To advance to the next stage, Sentinels had to bank on the probability of G2’s heavy defeat against Loud yesterday, which would have put the team ahead on head-to-head differential. However, G2 eventually outlasted Sentinels by 2 rounds, securing third place and shattering Sentinels’ hopes of qualifying.
Sentinels’ defeat has turned them into a meme among the Valorant community in America, a topic that remains on the trending list for now. Some teams, including G2, made jokes about the moment. However, many thought that G2 had taken it too far. Some commenters also labeled the team as classless and insensitive, especially considering the Valorant esports scene’s loss of Karel ‘Twisten’ Ašenbrener to suicide last year.
As of writing, the post remains on G2 Valorant’s page and can be shared by anyone. However, if pressure from fans continues to mount, we can expect Riot to take legitimate action against G2 in the near future. Should that happen, it would be the second punishment given to the team.
