I recently got into playing Valorant, and am having a pretty great time. I’ve only been playing deathmatch and unranked, but it’s been really really fun. I expected it to be toxic, as I’ve heard it can be, but instead I’ve met a bunch of awesome people in unranked. I’ve found myself laughing so hard my chest hurts. it’s been great. And for the most part, I haven’t gotten any shit for being a girl, or for being black. I’ve actually met a bunch of other players who are girls as well. Basically, unranked seems cool and welcoming. I’ve killed teammates on accident, fucked up their line of sight, made some terrible plays, and people are always nice about it.

So my question is, does this translate over to competitive? I felt similar to how I am feel now with Overwatch a few years back, killing it in quick play, and deciding to try out competitive. Whewwww did they call me names. I got thicker skin the longer I played, but while I was still figuring out the game, it was incredibly unpleasant. But I heard that Valorant was toxic all over, and I personally have never had that experience. Is playing competitive even worth it if you aren’t 100% solid on the game, or if you aren’t the “typical gamer?”