Since players can be temporarily banned in Valorant for leaving a match early, Sydeon felt indeed like she was in a form of hostage situation, as she couldn’t leave the match and was constantly berated.
Sydeon is thoroughly fed up with such sexist tirades. She also stands against relativizing statements that dismiss it with a shrug saying “Well, that’s just how it is in gaming”:
Furthermore, I want to say that [a saying like] “These are video games, coarse language is normal, and don’t be so sensitive” doesn’t hold. If this [gaming] is culture, then damn well change it!
Indeed, many women in gaming are now so frustrated with such stupid remarks, that they avoid voice chat.
Are there other cases as well? Another example of sexist insults against women in Valorant was recently observed with the streamer Anny. She shared a clip on Twitter where, as soon as she identified herself as a woman in the voice chat, she was already insulted. Among other things, she was showered with hate or was urged to perform sexual acts.
After massive sexist insults, the streamer has had enough
What happened next? Sydeon was not satisfied with just venting her anger on Twitter. She also reached out to the developers at Riot Games in another tweet, asking them to address the situation. Such trolls make the game an “unsafe place”.
Only 20 minutes after Sydeon’s tweet, Riot employee Joe “SWAGGERNAU7” Lee already reached out for more details:
The studio Riot Games itself has a controversial history regarding sexism and harassment in the workplace. The situation at the studio had reportedly become so severe that there was an exposé about the work atmosphere at Riot from Kotaku.
As a result, many changes were made at Riot to alter the toxic image of the company. Among other things, a renowned Harvard professor was even commissioned to reform the company and address sexism. This was two years ago, and since then the situation seems to have improved and they take the issues of sexism and harassment seriously.
The Twitch streamer Sydeon just wanted to play a round of Valorant, but after facing massive insults, she felt pretty bad. However, she did not let this get her down, contacted Riot, and went viral on Twitter.
Who is Sydeon? Sydeon, whose real name is Sydney, is a 23-year-old streamer and cosplayer. Since January 2021, Sydeon has been steadily climbing the rankings on Twitch and currently has over 200,000 followers.
Her fans enjoy watching her play games like Minecraft, Among us, or Valorant. She is also known for high-quality cosplays from games like Apex Legends.
What happened? Sydeon actually just wanted to play a cozy round of Valorant in solo queue. But as soon as it became known that she is a woman, she faced sexist insults:
I signed up for a solo queue match. I was basically taken “hostage” after being yelled at and ordered to get back to the kitchen and how dare I even play. I am shaking with anger. I have never been this upset. I get insulted either for being boosted because I play with friends or I get flamed for my damn gender!
Since players can be temporarily banned in Valorant for leaving a match early, Sydeon felt indeed like she was in a form of hostage situation, as she couldn’t leave the match and was constantly berated.
Sydeon is thoroughly fed up with such sexist tirades. She also stands against relativizing statements that dismiss it with a shrug saying “Well, that’s just how it is in gaming”:
Furthermore, I want to say that [a saying like] “These are video games, coarse language is normal, and don’t be so sensitive” doesn’t hold. If this [gaming] is culture, then damn well change it!
Indeed, many women in gaming are now so frustrated with such stupid remarks, that they avoid voice chat.
Are there other cases as well? Another example of sexist insults against women in Valorant was recently observed with the streamer Anny. She shared a clip on Twitter where, as soon as she identified herself as a woman in the voice chat, she was already insulted. Among other things, she was showered with hate or was urged to perform sexual acts.
After massive sexist insults, the streamer has had enough
What happened next? Sydeon was not satisfied with just venting her anger on Twitter. She also reached out to the developers at Riot Games in another tweet, asking them to address the situation. Such trolls make the game an “unsafe place”.
Only 20 minutes after Sydeon’s tweet, Riot employee Joe “SWAGGERNAU7” Lee already reached out for more details:
The studio Riot Games itself has a controversial history regarding sexism and harassment in the workplace. The situation at the studio had reportedly become so severe that there was an exposé about the work atmosphere at Riot from Kotaku.
As a result, many changes were made at Riot to alter the toxic image of the company. Among other things, a renowned Harvard professor was even commissioned to reform the company and address sexism. This was two years ago, and since then the situation seems to have improved and they take the issues of sexism and harassment seriously.
