Avatar Legends Patch Targets Ranked Stalling
Developers have added a 15-second rematch timer and mid-match draw option to curb players intentionally stalling Ranked Rematch screens.
Updated on Nov. 5, 2026 in eSports
Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game developers addressed players who intentionally stall on the Ranked Rematch screen to prevent matches from moving forward. Patch 4.5, now live, adds a 15-second rematch timer where waiting it out results in a forfeit.
Why it matters
Players reportedly stall out of spite after losing or to avoid opponents with bad connections or prior lag. The change targets a behavior that blocks matchmaking for others, and stalling is now subject to penalties.
Patch 4.5 introduces a 15-second rematch timer in Ranked, with waiting it out resulting in a forfeit. The extraction does not provide player-count or stalling-frequency figures for the change.
The players
Avatar Legends: The Fighting Game
A fighting game based on the Avatar franchise whose developers introduced the Ranked rematch timer and draw option in Patch 4.5.
The details
Players intentionally stall on the Ranked Rematch screen, which prevents matches from moving forward and can cause the Ranked Match Found timer to expire and force a new search. Patch 4.5 also lets players offer a draw mid-match, and leaving a set to escape an opponent's bad connection still counts against the leaving player.
Timeline
Patch 4.5 went live the day after the developers' social media post addressing the issue.
Season Trajectory
Patch 4.5 extends the competitive penalty logic common in ranked fighting games by treating stalling on the rematch screen as a forfeit. The change tightens ranked integrity while leaving the question of how widely the behavior occurred unresolved.
Ranked players now face a forfeit if they wait out the 15-second rematch timer without acting, so stalling a match no longer carries no cost. Players who want to end a match early can offer a draw mid-match instead of stalling.
The takeaway
Stalling in ranked play now results in a forfeit, so players who want out of a match have a defined alternative in the draw option.
Further reading
For more on competitive play and ranked systems, see eSports.
