"Everyone's doing it. Guys are doing it with girls. Girls are doing it with other girls. Some get together in groups and do it! Some even do it with complete strangers! Some people like to do it hardcore. Some people like to watch others doing it. Over 20 million people are doing it. Safe to say, everyone's doing it." - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 advertisement
No, this isn't a review of Call of Duty. I opened with the advertisement quote because it is very applicable to League of Legends' current situation. There aren't quite 20 million people playing the game daily, but the actual figure is very close. Everyone and their grandmother (probably their dog, too) is playing League of Legends now, and the player base continues to grow larger. If you're thinking about joining the horde of League fans around the world, continue reading for confirmation on why you should play this game.
Many existing GameFAQs reviews of this game are pretty outdated; League of Legends is updated regularly and much has happened since its release in 2009. I decided to write this review to bring justice to a game that has mostly been scorned by previous reviewers.
/ GAMEPLAY \
1. Overview:
League of Legends falls into the MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) genre, with MOBA being a term coined by Riot Games in order to break away from its DotA (Defense of the Ancients) roots. The MOBA genre is a sub-category of the Real-Time Strategy genre in which each player controls one character only. This character is called a champion in League of Legends, but could be called something else depending on which game you are playing. Creeps, or minions, are computer controlled characters that follow a very basic movement pattern and perform simple, predictable actions. Other computer controlled characters are called monsters, but they are neutral.
The object of a MOBA game - and League of Legends as well, obviously - is to destroy the other team's base, or Nexus, if League
terminology is to be used. There are three paths, called lanes, that extend from each team's base. These lanes are referred to by the player base as "top," "mid," and "bot." Three turrets act as sentinels in each lane, followed by two turrets that guard the Nexus. Champions in each lane are trying to shove down the turrets, last hit (deal the finishing blow on) minions to farm gold, and push their lane into the Nexus.
2. Roles:
Oh, but it's so much more complicated than it seems. In the classic game mode, there are five players on each team. New players will often pick whichever character they feel like playing at the given time, but in a real game each player takes a position. The positions are "top laner," "mid laner," "AD carry," "support," and "jungler." The top laner, as the name suggests, goes to the top lane and is typically a tanky champion or a bruiser. Because they are isolated from the rest of the map, playing top lane requires a lot of individual skill and matchup knowledge. The mid laner, also as the name suggests, goes to the mid lane and is usually an AD (Attack Damage) or AP (Ability Power) caster. Both the AD carry and support go to the bot lane. AD carry champions usually require a lot of expensive items to be effective, so the AD carry takes all the minion kills. The support laner is the utility player of the bunch; support players need to control vision of the map through the placing of friendly wards (consumable items which give vision of a small area for a few minutes) and the removal of enemy wards. The support has many more responsibilities, but they are beyond the scope of this review.
The jungler role gets a paragraph to itself. The jungler navigates the areas between the lanes (the jungle). Because there is no clear objective for the jungler like there are for the laners - they just destroy towers - it can be a difficult position to pick up. Junglers spend
most of their time purging the jungle of monster camps, only coming out to "gank" (ambush) a lane. Because of the early game
difficulty involved in defeating monsters, most champions are not capable junglers until you are an experienced player.
3. Game Modes:
Aside from the 5v5 games that are played on Summoner's Rift, other game modes exist. The other game types are 3v3, ARAM (All Random All Mid), and Dominion. 3v3 games are played on The Twisted Treeline: a compact map with two lanes instead of three. ARAM games are played on The Howling Rift, a bridge with only one lane and five players. In Dominion, players on The Crystal Scar are tasked with capturing and defending points; whichever team currently possesses fewer points has health points gradually sapped from their crystal. Victory is achieved by fully draining the opposing side's crystal.
4. Characters:
League of Legends has more than 100 champions to choose from. One would have to play hundreds if not thousands of games to master a single champion, and no two champions are the same. Some characters may have similarities with others, but each is unique and plays differently than any other. Gameplay isn't the only thing unique about each character, though. From Blitzcrank, a yellow steam golem, to Twitch, a giant rat, Riot has a creatively designed character for everyone.
Each character has four skills that are assigned to the Q, W, E, and R keys. Each champion is different, but Q and W tend to be damage skills, while E is a utility skill. R is an "ultimate:" a champion's most powerful skill that typically has a long cooldown.
Most characters are designed by Riot with a specific role in mind for them to play, but often times these characters will end up being useful in other ways. For example, many bruisers and tanks are designed as top laners, but do well in the jungle also (and vice versa). A support character may even end up being a suitable mid. This may not always be the case, though. Study up on a character before using them in a game for ideal performance.
5. Items:
On top of a huge lineup of champions, items and item builds create even more diversity in each game. A lot of players will say that DotA 2 has a larger, better, more diverse set of items, but a) I'm reviewing the game League of Legends, not DotA 2 and b) that is subjective information from a biased crowd. Some characters can run crazy item builds and be successful, while others, such as AD carries, tend to have one or two builds that are optimal. The item system could probably stand to include more items, but it gets the job done well and is by no means an issue.
Gameplay Score: League of Legends, and MOBA games in general, has addicting gameplay elements that are very well implemented. 10/10.
/ STORY \
I would be a liar if I said League of Legends had a story, because it certainly doesn't. I'm completely okay with that, though. I feel like eSports as a whole have advanced because of this decision (to keep story elements to a minimum) and other small ones like it; League is really the first game that I think has a chance to make eSports appeal to a larger crowd.
Story Score: NA.
/ GRAPHICS & SOUND \
Remember what I said about Riot making decisions that move eSports forward? Their graphical decisions are some of them. League of Legends gets ripped by some players for being too cartoony and unimpressive. Instead of going for the flashiest, most modern looking graphics they could create, Riot chose the timeless approach. They chose a cartoon style that will age well - that is key to longevity in a game.
For example, look at The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Its graphics were revolutionary when it came out. By today's standards, it looks terrible (not knocking the game by the way, it's one of my all-time favorites). Take a peek at another game of the Zelda franchise, Wind Waker. The cel-shaded art style has not aged a bit, and still looks great ten years after release. This is the approach Riot has taken, and for that I commend them.
As for the sound, it's just fine. There are no legendary musical arrangements to be found, but the noises created by the game are not obnoxious (this is a very good thing, since you hear them every game). Each character has its own set of voice-overs, and most every skill has its own sound effects. Nothing to complain about here.
Graphics & Sound Score: The graphics and sound could not be much better for the type of environment Riot has created. 10/10.
/ DEVELOPERS \
When it comes to online games that are constantly being patched up with hotfixes and large updates alike, the developers play a large part in the success of a game even after release. In my eyes, a developer must have a good relationship with its player base, must be open to the needs (or demands) of its player base, and must be quick to the rescue when there is a problem. Riot Games has a history of both pleasing the crowd and doing what's best for the game. Granted, I don't always agree with some of their decisions when it comes to nerfing champions, but that's a minor thing. The end result is usually for the better.
Developers Score: So far, Riot Games has managed the pressure of being the biggest game in the world well. I don't have any large complaints. 9.5/10.
/ COMMUNITY \
This has been the driving point behind all of the low scoring reviews you see on gameFAQs, and for good reason. The League community, for the most part, is awful. You will get flamed for doing poorly in a game. Hard. However, judging a game based off of its community is hardly fair, especially for a game of this size. There are ways to avoid having to deal with the toxic player base. First of all, find some friends in your everyday life that play League. I don't tend to associate with the hardcore gamer crowd, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that some of my friends play the game. You might be surprised by how many people play League.
Play with your friends whenever you can, and when you play with randoms, be sure to add the players that are friendly toward you and the team. Surround yourself with model sportsmen and you won't have to deal with much of the junk that floats around the blind queues.
Community Score: Terrible, but definitely not Riot's fault. The community comes with being a massive, free to play game. 5/10.
/ PRICING MODEL \
League of Legends is free to play. Champions can be purchased with IP (Influence Points) or RP (Riot Points). IP is received for playing games, while RP must be purchased with real world currency. Skins for each champion must be purchased with RP, as well as IP and XP boosts, but everything else in the game (runes and rune pages) can be purchased with IP. Because of this model, it's completely possible to play the game to its fullest extent without paying a cent, but you can still support Riot if you feel the need to.
Pricing Model Score: It's a free game, what's not to like? 10/10.
/ PLAY TIME & REPLAY VALUE \
Personally, I've been playing League for a year and a half. I have probably spend close to a thousand hours on the game, and haven't really burned out on it. It's a great game that offers something new each time you play. On top of this, the skill level ceiling is limitless. There are so many little things you can always improve upon; the pros are constantly improving, even. Granted, you will need to get past the learning curve. League has a ferocious learning curve, but through practice you will prevail.
Play Time & Replay Value Score: Countless hours of game time await if you play this game, and it will always be a fresh experience. 10/10.
/ FINAL THOUGHTS \
Pros:
+Gameplay is almost flawless
+Graphics and sound will age beautifully
+Riot Games is a consumer-friendly company
+Free to play
+Thousands of hours of gameplay
+Limitless skill ceiling
Cons:
-Rather awful community
-Getting started can be rough
Play this game. Not only will you get hours out of this title, but you will spend less on video games and will get more enjoyment out of it.
Final (average) Score: 9.35
Best Regards, Razvan !
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