Legends of Runeterra: 40 Things You Need to Know About Riot’s New Game
Legends of Runeterra is a brand new digital card game from Riot Games. It was just announced as part of Riot’s ten year anniversary stream (along with a number of other hugely exciting projects), and will give players a whole new look at the world of League of Legends, bringing many of its iconic champions to life in a whole new way. It’s hugely exciting, in other words, and there’s an awful lot to dig into. (You can even pre-register now!)
My Legends of Runeterra overview and hands-on impressions are here, but that only covers some of what I learnt about the game. Here are 40 things you need to know about Legends of Runeterra:
League of Legends: Wild Rift Brings the MOBA to Mobile and Consoles
League of Legends is finally coming to mobile as League of Legends: Wild Rift. Riot Games is adamant, however, that League of Legends: Wild Rift is not simply a port of the PC MOBA. Check out the trailer for Wild Rift in the video above.
Like the PC version, LoL: Wild Rift is a 5v5 MOBA, but it’s been adapted for mobile and console play. Unlike the click-to-move controls, Wild Rift features a new twin-stick mechanic. Similarly, Wild Rift is being designed specifically for 15 to 18-minute games.
Riot didn’t reveal the full extent of the overhauls, but there appear to be significant enough changes between the PC and mobile/console version of League of Legends for Riot games to warrant the new subhead.
Everything Announced at Riot’s League of Legends 10th Anniversary Celebration
Riot Games celebrated 10 years of League of Legends today with a big blowout livestream. The big anniversary show featured several new announcements from Riot Games, including a new champion in League of Legends and multiple new video game announcements.
Some of the announcements Riot Games made today were expected, like Riot’s long-rumored fighting game. Other projects were newly announced today. Here’s everything Riot Games announced during today’s 10th-anniversary livestream.
New League of Legends Champion, Senna
League of Legends will have a new champion for the Rift next month. Fans rightfully guessed online that the new champion would be Senna, and they are correct. Senna was originally trapped in Thresh’s lantern as revealed in Lucian’s story, but she’s ready to join the fray.
Legends of Runeterra: Why Riot’s New Digital Card Game is a True Contender
Riot Games clearly doesn’t do things in half measures. Legends of Runeterra (LoR), the studio’s long-awaited “Game 2” (no, Teamfight Tactics doesn’t count) has been in development for three plus years, currently has a team-size north of a hundred and despite featuring iconic characters from League of Legends, uses NO legacy art. It’s a substantial investment - for a CCG, no less - but the result is a game that looks and feels like a million bucks, and will shake up in the space in some significant ways.
For League of Legends fans, it’s the inclusion of champions that will immediately appeal. 24 of the most iconic champions from the MOBA are featured in the initial batch of cards, with more promised for each future set. The starter lineup covers off a heap of fan favourites; both broadly popular and somewhat divisive characters, and the range is reflective of the variety in League itself. On one hand you have Teemo, Heimerdinger and Braum, on another, Garen, Darius and Tryndamere. On still another, Ezreal, Fiora and Lux. Oh, and better include Yasuo, Shen and Zed too. And Elise, Thresh and Kalista for a darker vibe. And it wouldn’t be League of Legends without Jinx. The list goes on.
Riot Announces League of Legends Fighting Game
Riot Games celebrated League of Legends' 10th anniversary in a major way with its anniversary livestream, highlighting the future of the ever-expanding LoL universe. And that includes a brief glimpse of its new fighting game, the existence of which was first confirmed on the first day of EVO 2019 back in August.
Riot has now confirmed that this fighting game is set in the League of Legends universe and remains in the early stages of development. Codenamed Project L, there are currently no additional details, like a release date or window, character roster, or gameplay info, at this time.
Arrow Just Kicked Off the Countdown to Crisis on Infinite Earths
This article contains full spoilers for Arrow's Season 8 premiere. Be sure to also check out our review for Arrow Season 8, episode 1.
Arrow just kicked off its eighth and final season with what is easily the series' most dramatic status quo shift ever. Oliver Queen is a man with a new mission, helping the Monitor prepare for the coming Crisis and literally watching Earth-2 disappear from existence in front of his eyes. And even as Ollie fights to save his world, he's faced with the knowledge he's doomed to die,
We had the chance to chat with star Stephen Amell after watching the Season 8 premiere. Amell discussed the big changes coming Oliver's way, the joys and challenges of reliving Arrow's Season 1 era, and where exactly Ollie's new mission will take him next.
League of Legends Esports Manager Announced, For Real
Riot Games is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a series of new game announcements, but one of the more left-field announcements from today is the League of Legends Esports Manager. Similar to other sports management sims, the Esports Manager will put players in charge of building and managing a League of Legends pro team.
Just as in games like Football Manager, LoL Esports manager is a team management game currently in development. Players will take the role of an esports team manager and sign players to contracts, build a team, and eventually take a squad to the LoL World Championships.
Riot Games Announces a Competitive PC Shooter Codenamed ‘Project A’
League of Legends developer Riot Games has announced it is working on a new, character-based shooter for PC. Based on the description, it sounds like Riot’s version of competitive shooters like Overwatch or Rainbow Six Siege.
Riot’s hero shooter doesn’t have an official title yet, so it’s currently codenamed Project A. However, Riot did reveal that the Project A shooter will take place on a near-future Earth and will boast a “lethal cast of characters.” During the livestream, Riot says that it's focusing hard on combatting PC and network-related issues like picker's choice, low ping, and cheaters.
Like in Overwatch and Rainbow Six, each character will have a unique ability that players will need to use strategically to win matches. While details are sparse, Riot says more information is coming in 2020.
Catwoman: Anne Hathaway Salutes Zoë Kravitz’s Casting as Selina Kyle
Ex-Catwoman Anne Hathaway congratulated actress Zoë Kravitz for being cast as Selina Kyle.
Hathaway posted an image on her Facebook page on Tuesday of Kravitz at a film festival in 2017. She captioned it with a sweet message for her successor.
"The biggest congrats to Zoë Kravitz on landing the role of a lifetime. Well, one life anyway...," Hathaway wrote. "Enjoy the ride, Selena".
The Witcher 3 Nintendo Switch Review – Wind’s Howling
The dichotomy of beauty and violence has always been a driving theme in The Witcher series. The Northern Realms' gorgeous vistas are dotted with war-torn battlefields, kindness--no matter how fleeting it may be--is often juxtaposed with savagery, and even the warmest characters have a cold and calculated side to them. That neverending tug-of-war is ever-present in The Witcher 3, even when its stripped-down visuals may obscure some of that beauty.
Everything is here in the Nintendo Switch version--The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, its two expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, and all of its DLC. The main game alone offers dozens of superb quests filled with interesting characters, fantastic twists, and rewarding combat encounters. As Kevin VanOrd said in GameSpot's original review, "Excellence abounds at every turn in this open-world role-playing game." The same is mostly true for the Nintendo Switch version.
As you'd expect, the visuals have been pared down significantly. The textures are muddied, the draw-distances are reined in, and the resolution has taken a hit. These issues are exacerbated during docked play. While it technically runs at a higher frame rate and resolution docked, these visual issues are all the more noticeable when projected onto a larger screen.
The standard Nintendo Switch's 6.2-inch screen does a great job of hiding the blemishes. Even though it's running at a lower resolution, the smaller screen gives it a much crisper look, so the poor textures and pop-in are less apparent. If you do plan on playing it in handheld mode, you can, thankfully, adjust the size of the HUD to make things easier to read.
For returning players, the visual downgrade may require some getting used to. However, focusing solely on The Witcher 3's visuals does this port a disservice. Four years later, the game is still massive in scope, and seeing the battle-scarred swamps of Velen, jagged peaks of Skellige, and sprawling countryside of Toussaint on a technically inferior platform is still a sight to behold.
More importantly, the grittier look of the Switch port doesn't affect The Witcher 3's core gameplay. The combat and exploration may be smoother on a PC, Xbox One X, or PS4 Pro, but I found performance to be consistent throughout a wide variety of combat encounters and locales. After nearly 30 hours, I haven't experienced any significant frame rate dips. Even the swamps in Velen--an area notorious for causing frame rate issues on PS4 and Xbox One--are comparable to the rest of the experience on Switch. According to developer CD Projekt Red, the frame rate should range between 24 and 30 frames per second. In populated areas like Novigrad, the frame rate dipped to the lower end of that range. Given the slower pace of The Witcher 3, I never found these dips to be an issue, even in the heat of combat.
The Witcher 3's visual prowess may have been a selling point for some in 2015, but the Nintendo Switch version is a reminder that there is far more to this adventure than a pretty picture. Even today, there are few games that can rival the storytelling and worldbuilding on display here. Nothing is as simple as it seems, and every thread you pull on reveals enticing new details about this world and its characters.
The Nintendo Switch version is a reminder that there is far more to this adventure than a pretty picture
The vast web of decisions and consequences is just as impressive as it was in 2015. While it may not be apparent on your first playthrough, your actions--both big and small--can have serious repercussions, even if you were trying to do the right thing. What's more impressive is how well fleshed-out each of these paths are and how they ebb and flow through main quests and side quests. While many outcomes are bittersweet by design, none feel underdeveloped.
Where The Witcher 3 continues to shine is in its many deeply human stories. While the political aspects of the main story give context to the world and the characters that inhabit it, it's the interactions Geralt has with its denizens that gives weight to the experience. There are no good guys or bad guys. There are just people fighting to find hope in an oppressive world. Many of the quests provoke questions like: Would you hurt others for those you love? Can even the most vile of men be forgiven? How far can fear drive someone?
The superb storytelling continues in the game's two expansions. Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine. While not necessary to the main narrative, these two expansions are thoughtful addendums to Geralt's story. Blood and Wine in particular is a heartfelt send-off for the storied series. If you're jumping back into the game and just want to experience these, you can skip to them right when you load it up for the first time.
Although the Nintendo Switch might not be the best platform to play The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, it's still a fantastic experience that shouldn't be missed. If you are looking to replay The Witcher 3 and bask in its detail and beauty, the Switch port may not quite scratch that itch. However, what makes this game excellent isn't its graphics, but the powerful stories it tells, and those are as vivid as ever on Switch.