Note: I wrote "magic players" because the "C." word seem to be automatically censsored.

Like most of you, I love this game and hope it's not going to become like other notorious games that are plagued with "magic players".

You've probably heard about that NA radiant guy, Solista, that got banned for "being magic". Recently, another radiant, in EU (a Turkish player, forgot his name) got banned too and that case got less exposure.
Those exemples are just the tip of the iceberg...
For the record, I've played my fare share of competitive FPS, started with CS 1.3 so I've seen more than enough "magic players" during all those years.

Valorant was a breath of fresh hair due to a better anti"magic players" system (I guess) and, mostly, due to the fact it's a new game. Now that it's gaining in popularity, magic soft makers and "magic players" seem to be more and more active in the game and found their way around Vngurd.
Last weeks, I've noticed a really worrying number of "magic players" in my games. And I can say that without any doubts.
A lot of players will confuse these "magic players" with smurfs. Hence the high number of complaints about smurfs on this sub. But trust me, most of them are not smurfs.
I know that what's obvious for me will not be that obvious for players that have few knowledge about magic software and how they work. I've never been magic and never will but I've documented myself more than enough on the subject.
It may sound stupid but you don't need to be some darkweb expert to easily find sources about magic softwares...yep, google & youtube are more than enough and, among scams, you'll find a worrying bunch of reliable sources !
Even worse, among the notorious "expensive" paid stuff, there are many free ones. Mostly aimmbots and, after reading tons of conversations on "magic players" forums, I can tell you they work pretty well and the numbers on those forums are pretty scary...

All those triggerrbots, colorrbots, ect are not that hard to detect. A few exemples:
- some aimmbots are activated withing a FOV (angle of vision) that can be really wide, as most "magic players" have crappy aim. Meaning that the first bullet of their burst will always be far from you (first shot activates the aimmbot that will then snap to the head) and second or third bullet will be right on your head. A player with good aim will almost always place his crosshair on your head THEN shoot. So, if that one guy that always HS you, always start shooting far from you, that's really sus.
- many aimmbots are locking on color, usually purple (enemies are set on that color), so you can see some of those "magic players" locking on purple stuff by mystake (can be a gun skin on the floor, an astra util, dead body's head, ect).
- Some "magic players" will keep their fire button pressed a bit too long after they've killed you. Meaning that they will keep your head locked while your dead body falls to the ground. So you see their gun going down very fast as you fall. And you can't confuse it with recoil control as it's way more sudden and brutal the second they kill you.
- Those trigger bots give those "magic players" inhumane reaction times. Even players like Shroud got a hard time when facing that Solista dude. So if you always got insta one tapped the micro second the first pixel of your head crosses the corner, that can be really sus. Also, don't forget the peeker advantage is noticeable in this game but those triggerrbots are so fast they will anihilate your peeker advantage.
Also keep in mind that peeker advantage can be against you if you passively hold an angle. So if someone one taps you in that situation, it may be that particular PA and not being magic.
- Some players can have a bad game start and then "wake up" and improve their game through the rounds. But they will rarely insta go from "Bot" to "One Tap God". Or being bad till they are in clutch situation and all the sudden aim like radiants. Or being bad since the begining and, when your team advance starts to be a bit too high (like 6-0 or something like that) those guys become TenZ on steroids. All those sudden changes are most likely not legit.
- being sprayed through smokes or walls can be common. But getting one tapped through those again and again, is really sus. Although "magic players" must be kinda stoopid to do that as it's really obvious but well, some of them do not seem to care...

Of course, there are walllhaccks too. I think that most of you know how it works. A player always holding the right angle even if you got super silent and did uncommon moves, a player that always speed insta peek pre-shoot that precise spot you are hiding in, a player that will always throw his util right in your feet however stealth you've been, ect ect...Of course, that particular ennemy could have been really really reallt inspired that day...but a report won't hurt if it's just inspiration ;)

If the suspicious guy is i your team, don't be happy to get carried and pay attention when you are in his view. It's even easier to detect. And don't hesitate to report him because next games, he can be in the opposite team !

Also, contrary to common beliefs, "magic players" are in most ranks, not only in high elo. You can already find a freakin' lot of them in silver & gold.
Some people obviously start to be magic in low elo. Some "magic players" are so bad that even with with magic softs they will struggle to climb ranks. Some "magic players", when they reach high elo will create smurf accounts for the exact same reasons as "legit" smurfs. Some "magic players" will boost friends in lower elos (or offering paying boosting services to randoms). Some "magic players" like the "ego boost" when playing in lower elos as their team will think they are immortal smurfs and praise them for the carry....ect, ect....there are many reasons why lower elos are far from being "magic players free".

Yes, some "magic players" are guetting banned but there are some ways to counter the hardware bans and, in the numerous new players joining the game everyday, you'll have the inevitable "magic players" hiding among them. Or players playing the game since some time and just decided to start being magic because they consider being "unfairly hard stuck" in low elo.

It seems that most of the community is not aware of that issue and won't report suspect players. Keep in mind that reporting will do no damage to legit players so don't be afraid to use that function !
Keep also in mind that being magic can be done in various ways... magic softs can be toggle on/off and "magic players" won't necessary be that top fragger obvious guy flying in the sky with reactor flames coming out of his butt and lasers blasting from his eyes, one tapping everyone through walls....