League of Legends players have been debating the effectiveness and safety of Vanguard, the anti-cheat system implemented in the game.
Many are curious: is League of Legends Vanguard good? Is League of Legends Vanguard safe?
This debate has been ongoing since Vanguard’s initial rollout in Philippine LoL servers on April 16, 2024, followed by a global release across all servers on May 1, 2024.
With roughly a month of data, Riot Games is now sharing some initial results on how the system is affecting League of Legends.
Is League of Legends Vanguard good? Rioter shares number of system bans since implementation
Riot Games shared some initial data on the effectiveness of Vanguard in League of Legends. Phillip Koskinas, Head of Anti-Cheat, posted a screenshot on X (formerly Twitter) showing a breakdown of bans in League of Legends from March 16, 2024 to May 20, 2024.
The data reveals a significant rise in the number of banned accounts following Vanguard’s implementation. Notably, on May 20, 2024, Vanguard banned over 3,000 accounts, the highest number recorded during the said period.
This is a significant improvement compared to the previous anti-cheat system, Packman, which primarily focused on code encryption. Packman’s ban data, covering March 16, 2024 to April 30, 2024, shows less than 1,000 bans.
Interestingly, the data also suggests that Vanguard is targeting high-level cheaters. Phillip mentioned in the same tweet that a high number of bans occurred in Master tier or above.
In addition to the strong performance of Vanguard, Riot Games also announced the implementation of hardware ID bans for League of Legends. This new measure aims to further deter cheaters by making it more difficult for them to create new accounts after a ban.
While these results provide you the answer to the question “Is League of Legends Vanguard good?”, there are more pressing issues players are raising.
Is League of Legends Vanguard safe? League of Legends Vanguard issues reported
Vanguard aims to create a more level playing field by cracking down on cheaters. However, some players have raised concerns, prompting the question “Is League of Legends Vanguard safe?”
Because Vanguard operates deep within a computer’s system (kernel level), it has sparked privacy worries. Players fear it might collect excessive data or be vulnerable to hacking. Riot assures users that Vanguard adheres to regional data privacy laws.
There have also been reports of Vanguard causing crashes, blue screens, and compatibility issues with other software. These problems can be frustrating for gamers, leading to lost progress and hindering performance.
Despite these challenges, Riot acknowledges the concerns and is actively working on improvements. They understand that new cheating methods arise constantly, and achieving perfect compatibility with every program is difficult.
Riot Vanguard is an anti-cheat program developed by Riot Games to ensure fair play in their games, initially released in Valorant, and later in League of Legends. It runs in the background on your computer to detect and prevent cheating software.
For more information about Vanguard, visit the League of Legends FAQ page.
READ MORE: How to uninstall Riot Client — step-by-step guide
