League of Legends or famously known by its short form, LoL, is a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) video game. The game was developed by Riot Games meant to be played on Windows and Mac operating systems. It was released by the developers on October 27, 2009 and there has been no stopping to the gaming community of League of Legends since.
LoL has been one of the top games based on number of players playing it year wise. The number has only grown and the MOBA title has been trending on the top for years now. It had astonishing statistics of being the most played game in North America in the middle of 2012. The game had a monumental 67 million number of players playing the game in 2014, which is dazing.
The game was also top streamed on famous video streaming sites like YouTube and Twitch TV.
- How to start playing?
- Gameplay
- Game Modes and Maps
- Game Categories
- LoL Champions
- League of Legends Update
- League of Legends Guide
- League of Legends Tournaments
How to start playing?
To play the game the user must download League of Legends game client from their official website. The user has to follow on screen instructions in the setup wizard, which will also install the basic patcher for LoL. After launching the game, the patcher will automatically complete the installation of the entire game. The game client will then download the whole game after which the user can start playing.
Gameplay
The game enables players to control a fictitious character called the champion which has unique abilities in the game. Players have to use the champion to battle their way against other online players or computer controlled bots.
The objective of the game is to destroy the opposing team’s “nexus”, which is the main structure built deep inside the base guarded by other defensive structures. All players controlling the champion start frail but get stronger as game progresses by collecting in-game items and experience.
Game Modes and Maps
League of Legends has a variety of game modes or maps like Summoner's Rift, The Twisted Treeline, Howling Abyss, etc. Each game mode is different from the other and has a certain way of playing. However, the basics of controlling the champion remain common throughout. The terrain of each game mode is also different and makes the game even more dynamic and hence less boring.
Game Categories
The Tutorial - The purpose of this category is to make a new player understand how to play the game and get them accustomed with various mechanics.
Co-op Vs. AI - This helps the players who have completed the tutorial to get a deeper feel for the game by matching team of humans versus team of computer bots.
Normal Matchmaking - This category pairs online players against each other based on their skill level.
Ranked Matchmaking - This is where the game starts to get serious. Only players who have account level 30 can play this category. Winning or losing the match results in an increase or decrease in the players rank which is calibrated at the initial stage of starting ranked games.
Custom Games - These allow users to create their own game lobby and play which ever game mode they want. There is no rank involved in doing so. This mode is also used in professional tournaments.
Blind Pick - This game category allows both sides to pick their champions at the same time. However, the identity of champion is not disclosed until the beginning of the match.
Draft Pick - Both team are allowed to ban five champions at their will by taking turns. Teams then pick their respective champions.
Random Pick - This is a fun to play category which assigns a random champion to each player playing the match.
LoL Champions
There are a total of 141 characters in the game. The number may increase with introduction of further game patch. Every champion have their set of unique abilities. Their damage number and type also varies. There are a total of six types of champions which include Marksman, Mage, Assassin, Tank, Fighter and Support.
League of Legends Update
Currently, patch 10.1 is up and running on the live servers. This is a massive patch since it's start of season 10 of the game. A lot of changes have been made including the new Dragon system, new terrains, and new Runes. Like every patch, there are some strong picks in the patch which will yield a high success rate when played. Here are the top picks in each role in the current patch of League of Legends.
League of Legends Guide
Learning the game and mastering it always takes time and practice. League of Legends has several layers to it and mastering different elements of the game requires proper guidance. Here are some guides that will help players to get better at the game-
League of Legends Tournaments
Riot Games has its dedicated League for all the major regions and minor regions. The calendar year is divided into two splits; Spring split and Summer split. Both of these tournaments are regional. These include(major)-
- League of Legends Championship series
- League of Legends European Championship series
- League of Legends Championship Korea
- Tencent League of Legends Pro League
After the Spring split concludes all the winners from each region compete on the international stage in Mid Season Invitational(MSI). Similarly, after the conclusion of the Summer split, best teams from around the planet take part in the Worlds tournament.
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