The World Series of Warzone, a $600K tournament set to take place in September, kicked off its first open qualifiers last week. Unfortunately, things didn't go smoothly after players complained that some teams cheated.
Many players had already expressed concern about the public nature of the open qualifiers before the World Series of Warzone started. Now that cheating allegations have muddied the results, Activision Blizzard might have to invalidate the placement of guilty teams. In a recent tweet, Warzone pro, Fifakill, made serious allegations of "people VPNing, people stream sniping other qualifier teams, and worst of all, people getting in their friend's games and dying to their friend repeatedly."
This is not something Activision Blizzard should just take lightly. Kills play arguably the most important role in securing qualification to move on to the next round of the World Series of Warzone. As per tournament rules, each kill is equal to one point, and those points multiply in value depending on placement. The first-place team gets double the points per kill, while the rest until the fifteenth-place team gets a 1.5x multiplayer.
At the center of this controversy is Jaavis of MAD Lions. Another player has already called out the professional Warzone played. But, instead of denying the accusations, all Jaavis had to say was the "everyone wants a spot" adding that the "format is the worst."
Under the Conduct and Penalties section, the tournament specifically states that "collusion" is cheating. By legal definition, collusion is a "secret agreement or cooperation, especially for an illegal or deceitful purpose acting in collusion with the enemy." If proven guilty, MAD Lions risks losing their placement at the WSOW and possibly future events.
This sends a terrible message to people genuinely trying to qualify and others looking to begin competing as well as sponsors looking to get into Warzone comp. Furthermore, it makes it more likely that open qualifiers for big events will be removed which is heartbreaking.
— Fifakill (@Fifakill_) August 14, 2022
With the next leg of WSOW set to start later this week, we'll probably hear more from the tournament officials soon.
Speaking of Call of Duty, make sure to keep an eye out for the Call of Duty Next event on September 15.
