With Riot Games’ announcement of League of Legends’ mid laner mage, Hwei, the last champion of 2023 was unveiled to the public. The painter is the 166th champion released in League, but will certainly not be the last.
But as Riot further widens the champion pool of their main title, they might look at characters of the League universe already known to players. The world of Runeterra has expanded in all directions since it was first created. Animated shows, card games, and standalone titles have widened the horizon of a colorful and variegated universe that fans love. But since other IPs, like Legends of Runeterra or Riot Forge’s titles, had the chance to further dive into the world of Runeterra, lore fans and League players have been requesting Riot add newly-discovered characters to the MOBA game.
They succeeded twice, with both Senna and Yone being added to League after their existence was already unveiled in the game’s universe, and the request will be satisfied again.
In a recent interview with Dot Esports, Lexi Gao, champions product lead on League, revealed exciting details about Riot Games’ plans to introduce champions from other Runeterra IPs into LoL. “There are champions that we’re planning that previously existed in other Runeterra IPs,” she explained, “but I have to say though, a lot of times our team is not very good at doing it because we are the team that is very good at starting new things.”
Gao revealed that adding pre-existing characters to League is not as straightforward as it may seem, shedding light on the complexities and challenges faced by the champions’ team. Even with the introduction of champions like Yone, the champion team at Riot faced the challenge of adapting his abilities and appearance to a game that is “significantly different” from LoR.
“The way the team at Legends of Runeterra works, and then the way that they think about certain champions, they think about it in a very card game sense,” Gao explained. But if that was understandable before, now there is a “necessity for collaboration” as Riot strives to create a cohesive experience for players across all their IPs.
Despite the difficulties this might create, Gao assured players that the journey is worth it, promising “amazing” moments for the League community. “There’s a lot of really cool things that are coming, and we might not get it right the first time, but we’re down to keep on trying and keep on exploring and keep on getting better so that in the future we’re just doing it more and more.”
The promise of continuous improvement and exploration echoes Riot’s commitment to delivering a rich and interconnected gaming experience for players across all their IPs, as also stated by League’s Executive Producer and Game Director in another interview with Dot Esports.
Disclaimer: Riot PR paid for travel to Seoul and provided accommodation.
