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As one of the games that helped send the multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) genre into the stratosphere in both player count and popularity,League of Legendsis hard to avoid. In it, you’ll choose your preferred champion and battle against real players in frenetic, team-based matches, aiming to push lanes and eventually take down the enemy Nexus.
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First launched in 2009, League has over 180 million registered players, some of whom aim for the very top of its global esports scene. For those interested in starting their journey in Runeterra, we weigh up whether LoL is worth playing, in terms of time and cost.
Review
League of Legends is everywhere. It has spawned several games spanning multiple genres, an esports scene that has counted the likes of Madison Square Garden among its hosts, and evenan Emmy-winning animated seriesfeaturing music fromserial Grammy winner, Sting.
When it comes to the game itself, you can put League of Legends firmly in the bracket of ‘easy to learn, hard to master’. Don’t go into LoL thinking you’ll be a top player in no time — it will likely be a very confusing experience due to the sheer number of champions, abilities, and items you’ll need to familarise yourself with.
However, once you’ve settled in, and got a feel for the rules and general etiquette, it can quickly become a game that encompasses all of your playing time. It’s one of those competitive games that really scratches the itch, and leaves you convincing yourself that one more match is perfectly fine. It’s a game you’ll need to balance, as you can quickly become consumed by the grind to climb the ranks.
LoL, Dota 2, and Smite are high-skill games that require years of practice and near-constant attention to shifts in meta in order to excel at them. Unlike a lot of other genres, it seems like most people either play MOBAs a lot, or not at all.
As with many online-only games, especially competitive ones, the community can beincrediblytoxic — especially to newer players. Abuse can come in torrents if you even set one foot wrong, and other players can, and will, grief you until you either quit or join them. Riot hasn’t done a great deal at truly combating this, so playing League can be demoralising in that respect.
If you want a more accessible version of the game with almost-identical gameplay and none of the toxicity, then Riot also has you covered inthe excellent mobile-only League of Legends: Wild Rift.
Time Expenditure
League is one of those games that you can play as much or as little as you like, with no real impact on anything but your ability and enjoyment. It’s very much a drop-in, drop-out kind of game.
A classic five-versus-five match onSummoner’s Rifttypically lastsbetween 30-60 minutes, with the more funAll Random, All Mid (ARAM)game mode lastingaround 20-30 minutes. Mileage in other game modes, such as the rotating seasonal and special events, varies, butyou’ll rarely play a match that tops an hour.
In terms of how much time you’ll need to master the game, or at least get to a point where you’re competitive enough to climb out of the lower ranks, you should be prepared to invest hundreds, and more likely thousands, of hours. Like any competitive endeavour, practice makes perfect. The best of the best will often play an unhealthy amount of League in their quest to be picked up by a professional team.
However, you’re never obliged to be this tryhard. It’s entirely up to you where you draw the line — just make sure to take breaks!
In order to access the Ranked ladder, you will first need to reach Summoner Level 30 — something which could take youa couple of hundred games and several months of playing regularly— and have unlocked 20 or more champions. See below for the potential cost of this.
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Cost
League of Legends bills itself as afree-to-play game, and that holds up —you’re never obliged to spend money to take part in matches. However, it’s important to understand the limitations of this, the various currencies in the game, and how they affect your experience.
This bypasses the 20-champion rule for Ranked play, but you’ll still need to reach Level 30.
Riot Pointsare the standard currency,purchased for real money. This facilitates accessing everything in the game at will, from unlocking champions to purchasing skins and other boosts. The cheapest usually go for 260 RP (around $2 USD), while a brand-new or popular champion will cost 975 RP (around $7.50 USD).
The second main currency isBlue Essence, which isearned from levelling up or completing in-game missionsconnected with events. Champion unlocks will range from 450 to 6300 Blue Essence.
As for other things to spend real cash on, there are plenty. Cosmetic skins serve no real gameplay purpose and are used by players to show off in-game, while there are also various emotes and boosts you can use to maximise XP or Essence gain following matches.
The number of skins available in League of Legendsruns into the thousands,with some even crossing over into pop culture zeitgeist. They’re a colossal source of income for Riot Games, bringing in billions of dollars each year.
FOMO (fear of missing out) plays a massive part in this, as with many free-to-play games.With skins costing anywhere between 390 RP (about $3 USD) to 3,250 RP (around $25 USD), your wallet could quickly start feeling light.
Finally,League of Legends has gacha-style lootboxes. Hextech Chests and Masterwork Chests are purchased with RP, and are comprised of two components — chests and keys — which can be bought individually or in bundles of several sizes. These can offer:
There are often themed lootboxes too, which coincide with an in-game event. These offer largely the same items, with a slant towards the particular skins associated with the event.
All in all,it’s rather easy to spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars in League of Legends. Be aware of these costs, and set limits.
What Players Are Saying
A Rare Game For Life - Harry Alston
League of Legends is one of the most popular games of all time, but that doesn’t mean you should dive into this expecting a fun experience off the rip. The learning curve is steep, and the community can be brutal.
Get some friends together or expect to be flamed non-stop in the chat for being bad at the game, at least for first six months of you trying out the game. Once you get over that hurdle, LoL is a deeply complex game with a thriving esports scene and so much to learn. One of those rare games that truly can become “a game for life.”
Great Game, But Some Things Aren’t In Your Hands - Sanyam Jain
Ever since it launched, League of Legends has featured many new champions across different categories, while Riot has constantly messed around with other champions and general gameplay.
This leads to scenarios where some champions can be stronger than the rest. Moreover, there can be times when you do great in a game, but still lose due to a lack of coordination in the team. If you don’t put too much weight on winning, it can be a great game.
Only Under Certain Circumstances - Axel Bosso
I’ve played LoL for years. I had fun during matches and I always loved the characters, the passion behind their design, mechanics, lore, and especially their artwork. I also hated playing League a lot of the time due to a myriad of reasons, but we could summarize them in one: you may’t have a bad match. It’s as simple as that.
As long as you’re killing it (and your team is doing their part), everything will be fine. But once you have one bad game (and believe me, you will have tons of terrible games just because, well, you’re learning) the fun ends. Everyone will hate you and let you know about it. If you play it only with very kind friends, it can be fun. At least most of the time.
