League of Legends’ Summoner’s Rift is getting a complete make over

After so many years and slight changes, it’s about time League of Legends’ Summoner’s Rift got a complete overhaul. Although it is a ‘work in progress,’ Riot has released a video showing off what they have so far and it’s looking pretty damn good. It appears as if they are removing the cartoonish element to the game and making it much more gritty and dark. While I can’t deny the fact that it looks beautiful, I wonder if this is what players want?

The first thing I noticed is just how smooth and crisp the new images are. Without the cartoonish elements, trees and other environmental devices are just so much tighter. This allows for clearer environments and more space visually. Ina a game like LoL, split seconds matter and can make or break plays. The last thing someone should be worried about is clarity of textures before ganking.

Something I found interesting in Riot’s official write up is how certain neutral mob camps look identical to one another, IE wolves and Lizard Elder. Since Lizard is a much more powerful monster, why is its camp identical to wolves – who are an incredibly weak monster? They shouldn’t be. The environment should relay hints to the sort of creature and the power of that creature to those around it.

Riot’s other major focus has been on visual fidelity. What this means is that they have focused on these four major aspects:

• Any artwork we create, first and foremost, should enhance gameplay, clarity, and readability.
• We want to use a stylized approach that will lead to visually stunning environments, minions, and creatures for many years to come.
• Summoner’s Rift is a special place. In our work on the map, we’ve taken to describing Summoner’s Rift as a magic-infused, untamed, mountain top, fantasy forest; a place where we want to spend thousands of hours. While we are making major changes to the environment artwork, we strive to retain the similar mood, tone, and overall feel of the original.
• Our UI, environments, as well as the champions, minions and creatures that inhabit them, should share a consistent quality bar that makes them feel cohesive to one another and to League of Legends as a whole.

So keep an eye out for these visual updates in the PBE very soon. Sooner or later, the finalized version of this work in progress will be live and everything you’ve ever known will have changed. Enjoy the preview video above.