Riot Games has set July 13 as the date it will begin recording voice chat in Valorant, so when disruptive behavior reports are made, there will be audio for the developers to use as evidence.
Like nearly all major multiplayer video games, Valorant has run into trouble with in-game toxicity. Many players are not only rude to one another, but occasionally tip over into identity-based harassment. Riot hopes this new system will help to stamp out that behavior.
It is important to note that this new feature will only record words spoken in English, and will only be implemented in North America â at least at first. July 13 marks the start of the testing phase for Riot's software, so any audio recorded will not be used in disciplinary action. This period of recording will help Riot train its language models and make sure the technology behind the feature is up to snuff.
Riot Games changed Valorant's Terms of Service and Privacy Notice to accommodate this voice recording feature last May, and has presumably been working on the system since.
Riot Games says that after the testing period is over, it will release a beta that will put this new addition into full effect. The dates of that beta have yet to be announced.