FaZe Kalei Responds To TikTok Cheating Allegations

Esports team recently FaZe Clan made history by signing Kalei Renay, a "Warzone" superstar, to its roster. However, not everyone is happy about the latest addition, and a campaign of angry fans on TikTok has now earned Kalei a ban from the video-sharing platform. Kalei defended her honor by explaining the allegations and attempting to prove her innocence on stream.

Not long after FaZe Clan announced its newest member, viewers started coming for Kalei, referencing a clip posted by FaZe Clan. In the clip, she can be seen playing "Warzone" and making a number of quick and efficient kills. However, fans have apparently taken issue with a red box that appears in a few instances during the video, which some have pointed to as proof that she's been cheating in the game. 

After a rush of reports on Kalei's TikTok account, the account was suspended.  According to FaZe Kalei on Twitter, "incels are mad on tiktok bc i joined faze & spam reported me and it's now perma banned."

Kalei continued, explaining how difficult it actually was for her to break into the streaming world and how she feels devalued by these allegations. She tweeted, "7 years grinding every single day on stream since i was 14/15 ... but hey being a girl is easy and they let anybody in." Kalei seems to feel that the world of pro gaming is still largely a boys' club, and her success has ruffled the feathers of many gamers.

Kalei has explained that the mysterious box is the result of her in-game loadout. During a recent stream, Kalei asked a fellow player, "Did you see on TikTok that there's someone that made a video of me and he's all like, 'She joined FaZe but she's cheating!' And their only excuse of me cheating is that I have Specialist and there was a red box behind, but that was the loadout." 

Later in the stream, Kalei provided viewers with a tutorial on why the red box appears on her screen and no one else's. "I have Spotter, alright? And in the clip of me 'cheating,' I have Specialist." 

Kalei then read the descriptions of these perks, which indicated that players can mark boxes for their teammates to find. The marked boxes appear to have a faint orange or red outline, which the player can see from far away. Kalei walked far away from the box, just to show how it appeared on screen. Though Specialist has now been removed from the game, Kalei explained that the Spotter perk allows players to mark boxes as well.

"Warzone" has experienced problems with cheaters before. NickMercs unloaded on "Warzone" developers for not working harder to rid the game of cheaters and trolls, but it didn't seem to do much good. As hackers continue to spread like a virus in "Call of Duty," its fans' responsibility to call them out. However, it seems like these angry fans were sorely mistaken.