Cheaters in online games are the worst, a universal truth that makes every legit player want to rage quit. For years, the Call of Duty franchise has been, let's say, extra popular with the hacking crowd. From the glory days of Call of Duty 4 to the battle royale behemoth Warzone, exploits like aimbots and god modes have been a persistent thorn in the side. The problem hit a whole new level of absolutely bonkers when crossplay threw everyone into the same chaotic pool. But hey, Call of Duty isn't the only game in town with this headache. Over in the tactical shooter arena, Valorant faced its own demons but brought out the big guns early with its proprietary anti-cheat, Vanguard. Now, Activision is finally stepping up its game with its own heavyweight contender: the Ricochet Anti-Cheat system. It's 2026, and the war on cheats is more sophisticated than ever.
Valorant's Vanguard: The Controversial Sheriff in Town
When Riot Games launched Vanguard for Valorant, it wasn't just an anti-cheat; it was a statement. This software goes hard in the paint. Its secret sauce? A kernel-level driver that boots up with your PC, giving it the highest possible security clearance to monitor for shady software and system vulnerabilities. No driver, no game—it's that simple. Paired with an always-on client, it proactively sniffs out trouble before it even starts.
Of course, this Big Brother approach caused quite the stir. Players were like, "Hold up, you're giving a game top-level access to my entire machine?" 🤨 The concern was real, but in practice, Vanguard operates at the same security level most cheat software tries to exploit anyway. Early days were a bit overzealous (RIP some harmless monitoring software), but these days, it's a much more refined and less disruptive guardian. The results speak for themselves: Valorant's cheating scene is a ghost town compared to the wild west that Warzone became.
Call of Duty's New Hope: Enter Ricochet Anti-Cheat
Activision saw the writing on the wall (and the endless complaint threads on Reddit). Their answer? The Ricochet Anti-Cheat initiative. Announced with much fanfare to launch with the big Pacific Update, Ricochet is Activision's multi-pronged strategy to take back their game. It's a two-fold beast:
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The PC Kernel-Level Driver: Taking a page from Vanguard's playbook, Ricochet employs its own kernel-level driver on PC. But here's the key difference: it's not always-on. This driver only wakes up when you fire up Warzone and goes back to sleep when you quit. Activision promises it "only monitors and reports activity related to Call of Duty." This is a crucial design choice to address privacy concerns.
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Server-Side Analysis & Account Security: Beyond the driver, Ricochet includes server-side protocols that analyze player behavior for sus activity (think impossible reaction times, unnatural aim). Plus, they're cracking down on account security to make it harder for banned cheaters to just waltz back in with a new account.
This focused approach is smart because, let's be real, the PC platform is the main source of the cheating pandemic in Call of Duty. Console modding is a much higher mountain to climb for would-be hackers.
Vanguard vs. Ricochet: A Friendly Rivalry for a Good Cause
So, how do these two titans stack up? Here’s the scoop:
| Feature | Valorant's Vanguard | Call of Duty's Ricochet |
|---|---|---|
| Driver Activation | On PC Startup (Always) | On Warzone Game Launch Only |
| Core Method | Kernel-Level Driver + Active Client | Kernel-Level Driver + Server-Side Analysis |
| Primary Focus | Proactive Prevention & Detection | Targeted In-Game Monitoring & Behavioral Analysis |
| Player Sentiment | Initially Controversial, Now Largely Accepted | Cautiously Optimistic "Finally!" |
Both systems aim for the same goal: a fair playground. Vanguard goes for the fortress approach, guarding the gates 24/7. Ricochet is more like a special forces team, deploying precisely when and where the threat is active.
The Road Ahead in 2026
Fast forward to today, and the impact has been significant. Ricochet's integration into Call of Duty: Vanguard post-launch laid the groundwork, and its evolution has been a game-changer for the franchise. While no system is 100% perfect—cheat developers are a stubborn and crafty bunch—the Warzone experience in 2026 is lightyears better than the dark ages of a few years ago. Encountering a blatant aimbotter has gone from a nightly occurrence to a rare, reportable event.
The success of these systems shows that when publishers invest serious resources and embrace robust, kernel-level solutions (while respecting player concerns), they can actually turn the tide. It's an ongoing arms race, but for now, the good guys—aka the developers and the legit players—are winning. The community's hope is that this level of anti-cheat commitment becomes the new normal, not the exception. After all, everyone just wants to enjoy the game without some script-kiddy ruining the vibe. GGs only, please. 🎮✨