author: Miriam Moszczynska
Players Concerned Too Many Champions Turn LoL Into a Nightmare?
It's probably been a long time since LoL players have been so dissatisfied with how the game is performing. Riot is unable to shield itself from valid criticism.
Source: leagueoflegends.com
League of Legends. What is currently going on in the work of Riot Games is hard to sum up in one word. The developers are trying their best to balance the game before the World Championship, but the changes are going the wrong way, so Riot paddles back, changes again and.... you catch my drift - the developers seem simply unable to properly handle the situation.
What ails LoL players?
It's hard to pinpoint a single thing here, and contrary to appearances, it's not a case of one rabbi will say yes, the other no. Riot Games has recently taken so many contradictory actions that some players are simply fed up with. The first of the shortcomings of LoL is the sheer number of characters.
This is because for skirmishes on Summoner's Rift we can currently choose from 161 champions. This generates quite a few problems, the least severe of which seems to be the high entry threshold for new players, confused by the number of options.
Besides, such a large champion pool imposes on the developers the need to invent new skills every now and then, which (although already similar) have to distinguish themselves from the set of other heroes. The balance of these characters is also a problem.
Zeri - case study on how not to design characters
While Zeri was controversial at the outset, through her resemblance to Neon from Valoranta, her balance in LoL is something both funny and tragic at the same time.
The character appeared in the game on January 20 and since then has received 12 changes, 5 of which are hotfixes (introduced in emergency situations). The latest of these will appear in LoL along with patch 12.14.
All the patches affected the heroine's skill set, which doesn't put her in a very good light. What's more, her number of match wins jumped from 39% to as much as 59% (via Dot Esports). Currently, the ratio remains at about half of the games won.
A similar example could be Master Yi, who does not surpass Zeri much in terms of the number of changes, but their content. In patch 12.13 the character received quite a few buffs, which Riot had to correct a day after the update.
It should be a team game
The final problem strictly with Riot Games' heroes is that they are too self-sufficient. While this may seem like an odd accusation, LoL is a game intended for duels of teams.
As pointed out by AtreusIsBack, new characters are created as if they were to carry the weight of the other four players on their own shoulders. This makes playing LoL no longer being about teamwork, but building a team based on strong individuals who can bring victory by themselves.
"It's a hard thing to do. I don't want characters to do absolutely everything. It's gotten to the point where even ADCs are getting Yasuo's wind minis. And that's a problem, one of many problems. Evasive, unavoidable damage is everywhere, and heroes who should NEVER have it have been given air toss skills. End of story, period."
What have you done, Riot...
These are not the only criticisms aimed at MOBA's developers. In addition, players are also frustrated with how the feedback on the PBE test servers works (or rather, how it doesn't), or the changes in Akali's legendary Star Sorceress skin.
What Riot has done right for the time being, however, is to issue a clear and explicit message regarding when the World Championship in League of Legends will take place.
So in order not to end this news in an unpleasant note, I will only say that the Worlds will begin on September 29, in Mexico City and will end on November 5, in San Francisco. You can read the exact schedule of all phases of the tournament and the leagues that are being considered here.
