Riot Games has announced a series of tournaments - VCT Game Changers

Riot Games has announced the VALORANT Champions Tour (VCT) Game Changers. It is a holistic esports tournament aimed at complementing the competitive season by highlighting women's teams.

Whalen Roselle, senior director of esports at Riot Games, said in a statement that tournaments and development programs will also help create an inclusive environment for competition and increase the number of opportunities for women to compete without fear of identity or gender harassment.

"This is a new initiative that will complement the competitive season by creating new opportunities and openness towards girls. Game Changers is a year-long series that reflects the diversity in the VALORANT community," explained a Riot spokesperson.

The Game Changers main event kicks off in March, with the series splitting into 2 seasons in 2021, each with 4 open qualifiers, and Riot sponsoring ten independent female tournaments from other tournament operators.

Game Changers will consist of two main competitive initiatives: the VCT Game Changers series and the VCT Game Changers Academy. The VCT Game Changers series is a set of top-tier competitions that will take place around the world during 2021. These events will be similar in scale to last year's Ignition Series.

The VCT Game Changers Academy program will host monthly tournaments, giving players even more opportunities to compete at the semi-pro and lower levels. The events will be organized in partnership with Galorants, one of the largest communities in VALORANT.