Yesterday, the Valorant Grand Finals at the 32nd SEA Games in Cambodia sparked controversy when Singapore claimed its first SEA Games esports gold medal after Indonesia forfeited the match.

According to reports, the Indonesian team accused the Singaporean team of using a bug in Valorant to gain an unfair advantage. The Indonesian team then lodged a protest with the officials but they later forfeited the match after being unsatisfied with the officials’ response to the matter.

Allegedly, the Singaporean team used a Cypher Cam bug. This bug would have allowed the Singapore team to see where the Indonesian team were spawning into the match by exploiting the character Cypher’s Cam ability in a certain bugged location. This would have given them a massive advantage in the match.

However, according to pro Valorant coach Fayde, the Singaporean team’s camera couldn’t see into the barrier, so it couldn’t have been the bug. Apparently, the Singaporean team placed the Cypher Cam close to the bugged location, but not exactly where it should have been to properly exploit the bug.

Cam 1 = "bug cam" that can see into spawn like this video : https://t.co/1ey0F1Cj1k

Cam 2 = Normal Camera that sees into A main/front barrier

Cam 2 can't even tilt the camera and look into spawn, and that's the one Team SG used (https://t.co/8DKgXHWNMO)

Resume the match… pic.twitter.com/J4HrnUdgaE

— Fayde (@FaydeVLR) May 10, 2023

The bug would have been something like this:

Ultimately, the officials decided to award a joint gold medal to both Singapore and Indonesia.

The Esports Federation of Indonesia (PB ESI) official statement reads:

Sportsmanship and fairness are key values that we and the entire ecosystem should aspire to at all times. Violation of these values, as well as of integrity, are intolerable in the grand scheme of the sport. Tonight, at the Grand Finals of the Valorant Event, part of the Esports Events at the 32nd SEA Games Cambodia 2023, we found irrefutable evidence of a breach of rules committed by the Singaporean National Team for Valorant.

During the match, the Singaporean National Team was discovered exploiting a certain bug in the game, called a camera agent cypher, which provided unfair advantage by exposing the movements of the Indonesian National Team among others. This bug was used three times at the Split Map, going against both the Technical Handbook and the rules agreed upon at the technical meeting.

We have lodged an official protest to the organizers and we encourage everyone to respect and uphold the values that form the foundation of our sport: integrity, fairness, and sportsmanship. We reject and denounce – with unwavering resolve – actions and behavior that tarnish the ethical principles of esports, sports in general, and those of the SEA Games itself.

We at PB ESI, the Esports Federation of Indonesia, consider this act of cheating equivalent to doping and should be defined as digital doping. We must remember that esports still needs to gain world recognition. The values of sportsmanship, fairness, and integrity are important factors that must be agreed upon and implemented by esports players around the world. Therefore, our stance is firm: we oppose all actions against sportsmanship, fairness, and integrity, and we believe those who have violated these values should be given the harshest sanctions.