How League of Legends: Wild Rift champions will differ on mobile from PC
The latest developer update for League of Legends: Wild Rift gives us a look at how some champions are changing on mobile.
It had been almost six months since Riot Games revealed their mobile MOBA, League of Legends: Wild Rift, back in October. Since then, it has been pretty much radio silence. This month, however, the developer shared an update on the progress of the mobile version of their popular MOBA, showcasing some new gameplay and revealing how some of the champs will differ from their PC counterparts.
Design lead Brian “FeralPony” Feeney acknowledged that the goal with League of Legends: Wild Rift was to “keep the spirit and the essence of the champions” you already know while keeping the gameplay experience similar to PC.
To that extent, champions like Ziggs, Nami and Orianna should “feel pretty similar to PC.” While many of the champions will be nearly identical to their PC counterparts, some champions with “purely passive abilities” have been adapted into more active abilities.
Vayne’s Silver Bolts, for example, have been changed to an ability you can activate, giving her a burst of attack speed for three attacks. Her PC passive remains, so activating Silver Bolts should give you more “control and agency” over how you play.
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Champions with point-and-click spells, like Annie’s Disintegrate or Miss Fortune’s Double Up, have also been adjusted due to the difficulty in casting with dual stick controls. In Wild Rift, they will now be skill shots that you can aim freely without locking onto a champion or creep.
These changes may take some getting used to for veteran players, but I don’t necessarily see them as negative. If anything, it makes the game much more skill-based and even opens up some new gameplay opportunities.
In one of the weirdest champion changes made, it seems like Lux’s ultimate ability, Final Spark, will now travel across the entirety of the map. I’m not sure why this change was made but Riot did say they want player feedback.
Riot Games has done a tremendous job adapting Teamfight Tactics to mobile, but I feel like MOBAs are a bit more difficult due to the changes in controls. That said, I think Riot has seemingly done a good job keeping the champions as true to their PC nature as possible. The changes to some champions’ abilities don’t necessarily seem to be for the worst, but rather just different — which should make for some interesting gameplay.
Unfortunately, for those hoping for a beta announcement or release date for League of Legends: Wild Rift, the video stopped short. Feeney acknowledged that the game “still needs some more time” before entering the next round of testing.
He promised another update later this year which means we probably won’t get a beta or full release until 2020 at the earliest. He did warn not to download any clients claiming to be the game as there isn’t anything official yet.