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"We just can't find a way to tell stories with this whole League thing in the way." Well, WE did.

CupcakeTrap·9/4/2014, 11:47:35 PM·104 votes·8,606 views

http://i.imgur.com/tRZz0Hq.jpg

Factions is a community game mode and lore initiative based on faction versus faction matches, such as Noxus versus Ionia. We take the results of these matches, which anyone can start anytime, and use them to determine where the story goes next.

Today, Riot declared that it was simply not possible for them to write stories with the League and Summoners in the way.

With all due respect, I must question the sincerity of their efforts to do so before giving up, because a bunch of random players did it in their free time.

Take a look: The Lore of Factions

Needless to say, given that Factions is all about the League and Summoners, we're not super happy about Riot's decision here. We'll deal. But seriously, what gives?

They say that they can't have a war or other conflict because of the League. I guess they just couldn't come up with a workaround. Meanwhile, over at Factions, it seemed pretty obvious to us: the League's mission is to prevent apocalypse, not ensure world peace. They don't ban all war, they just insist that the states involved do not escalate the conflict to world-explodey levels, and eventually they step in and say "enough is enough" before enforcing a treaty.

They also said that it was just too hard explaining why Champions would join the League. Okay. Jinx? You really have a hard time understanding why Jinx would want to join something that involved blowing things up all day and getting paid for it?

EDIT: As for Summoners, I'd like to add something further. I agree that omnipotent mind-controlling slavemasters are a creepy concept. That's not how I view Summoners, and it's not how they are in Factions. In Factions, Summoners are there to use their magic to help Champions out, while giving tactical advice and watching out for incoming attacks. I'm entertained by the idea of Summoners and Champions yelling at each other in the halls from time to time about "how could you miss that gank!?" or "you're the one who can't hit Alistar from 20 feet away, Mr. It's All Skill!" I think it's really important to give players a place in the story.

I'd like to hear Riot honestly try to make the case that it was just impossible to tell good stories with a setting that still left the game itself making some kind of in-universe sense.

101 Comments

CupcakeTrap9/5/2014, 12:49:48 AM31 votes

I've seen a couple different Rioters, defending against complaints from the playerbase, insisting that this is important because it allows them to drive the story forward in ways they couldn't before, like having Champions die for real.

Ooookay, narrative team. You have fun a few months from now explaining to Sona players that a Noxian agent just murdered her and now she's canonically dead.

But hey! You can still play her, in a fantasy reality where she's still alive.

Bikohoness9/5/2014, 12:44:56 AM29 votes

Somebody once suggested that every department at Riot Games suffers from terrible management. I didn't want to believe it at the time, but every day that goes by convinces me that it is true.

Bad decision-making. A list of half-finished initiatives a mile long, enormously high priority put on things that don't really matter, while fundamental issues go unaddressed forever.

I remember working at a small start-up populated entirely by college grads that always thought their ideas were the pinnacle of brilliance, couldn't stay focused on the project as soon as it got hard, and threw temper tantrums if everybody else didn't do it "their way". You can probably guess that company failed miserably.

Unfortunately that is exactly what Riot Games looks like from the outside. They sure aren't failing yet, but moves like this lore reset sure doesn't build confidence as a brand.

CupcakeTrap9/4/2014, 11:57:24 PM15 votes

Is Factions folding in response to this announcement? Ha. Ha. Surely you jest.

Post: Riot’s Lore Retcon and Factions

Maybe we'll have to retcon Factions into a more abstract version that uses matches as symbolic representations of battles or something. We can deal. I just don't understand why Riot was so convinced it couldn't write lore without deleting the League from League.

ShadowKnight12249/4/2014, 11:56:42 PM12 votes

I absolutely loved the challenges presented by the League as a framing device. I am sorely disappointed that projects like these are going to fall firmly into "non-canon" territory simply because the lore team took the easy way out.

Chosen Chozo9/5/2014, 10:47:36 PM10 votes

Had to log in to upvote this. Honestly, it sounds like the Lore team just gave up trying to fit the story with the game, and it disappoints me to hear that. I'm sure there's a ton of reasons as to why they did it, but this is a video game. In order to tell the story best in a video game, you have to use the strengths from the media, instead of divorcing it completely from how the majority of players will experience the story.

What really bothers me is that since the game and story are separate, those special interactions between champs have little meaning, and all of our actions as summoners have no meaning at all. The champs themselves will feel like toys when I play them, rather than an actual living thing. When I hear Lucian curse Thresh for killing his wife, I'm just going to see two puppets acting out some play on a stage, instead of understanding the pain that Lucian went through, and the joy Thresh feels for his acts. When the Three Queens side quest appears, I'm not going to care who wins, because I know what my team does in that match literally does not matter in terms of the overarching story of the game.

What I would have preferred is that champions not ALWAYS be a part of the League. I don't believe the way the League works right now requires a constant commitment to it, and even if it does Riot could retcon that so it works that way. This way, champions don't have to have a specific reason to join the League in their lore (like the new champs) unless it's relevant, and can join when they have a specific reason too. For example, let's say that Demacia is facing off against the Shadow Isles, because reasons. Lucian normally wouldn't be allied with Demacia despite being raised there, but in this case would side with them and join the League. Also, if the lore was handled in this way, there could be events that happen every once in a while, and depending on summoners actions (perhaps Factions battles, perhaps something else), events could end differently. Maybe events could involve special matches, like the 1v1 Snowdowns, or could effect how a champion plays for a while in normal matches. There's a lot of ways that this could have been handled, and I just don't agree that removing the lore from the game is the way to go.

I'll end this with one more thing: someone had made the comparison between this and Super Smash Bros., in that the games we play now are just fantasy matches with League champs. The main fundamental flaw with this thinking is that in SSB, the characters you play are actually dolls or trophies because that's how that game works, and that's really what that game is: pit Nintendo characters against each other because it would be cool to see how they would fight and who would win. League of Legends is not that kind of a game. The characters are not dolls, they are living creatures in the lore. And they deserve to be treated that way, in the game and out.

The Red Warden9/5/2014, 12:32:30 AM8 votes

I don't know if this will help, but here is a list of all the champions whose personal bios (since apparently nothing else in the lore matters anymore) mention the league or are interconnected with it

First are the ones whose lore now makes no sense at all due to the changes: Jax Nocturne Chogath Kayle Morgana LeeSin Brand Singed Fiddlesticks Pantheon Orianna

The rest are the ones who only have a sentence or two about the league: Ahri Akali Corki Gangplank Hecarim Galio Graves KogMaw Malphite Zilean Tristana Annie Amumu Taric Sion Blitzcrank Alistar Viktor Malzahar Ryze MissFortune Fizz Leona Nautilus Sona Shen Shaco Varus Urgot Nidalee Teemo XinZhao Lulu Kennen DrMundo Caitlyn Irelia TwistedFate Ziggs Talon Lux Poppy Swain Veigar MonkeyKing Vayne Evelynn Janna Rumble Yorick Leblanc

Zhugan9/5/2014, 12:01:01 AM7 votes

SHHHHH!

You are making sense and Riot stopped doing that years ago!

Whitakker9/5/2014, 1:06:37 PM7 votes

http://assets.diylol.com/hfs/6d3/eb0/df2/resized/shots-fired-meme-generator-shots-fired-08537a.jpg?1348337891.jpg

You're doing God's work, CCT.

Godwyn9/5/2014, 5:27:47 PM6 votes

I don't have much to add, except perhaps a wish that the factions creators were in charge of the new lore instead of whoever is.

TwoPacalypse9/5/2014, 2:29:28 PM5 votes

I've thought this ever since i saw the Factions thing go up on the forums.

I've always thought the League should work like the U.N., but instead of ABOLISHING war, they REGULATE war into league matches!

Noxus wants to Annex a Demacian territory? The league sets up a match and the winner gets the clay!

I never understood why they didnt just implement a Factions queue, where you could fight for whatever faction you wanted! Probably would get a lot more use that dominion.

Boswick9/6/2014, 9:38:23 PM4 votes

They honestly should've just hired you to keep writing the JoJ.

Mattsumune9/5/2014, 10:50:52 AM4 votes

I believe the head of Riot's story department said that the creating narrative that players can follow was a waste of time? I mean he even made a presentation of it. This is just the result.

SkylarSans9/5/2014, 5:47:36 PM2 votes

Can you stop advertising this on every possible LoL related site?

dialMARK4acti0n9/5/2014, 9:45:28 AM2 votes

What about Yasuo? "Yeah, I feel like putting this sword to use by fighting the people trying to arrest me, meanwhile, trying to find out if one these 120 other dudes killed my master... OH! WANT DO YOU KNOW? THERE SHE (probly) IS!"

... C'mon... Jinx was the easy way out argument.

BESIDES, factions have NOTHING to do with League or Summoners... they have to do with :OO LORE!!! Big shock, right? But, I'll be damned if Garen's lore isn't considered patriotic for Demacia!

Kaine9/5/2014, 4:36:24 PM1 votes

I think the issues was more with the concept of the all powerful summoner. You cant really have Syndra single handedly crack the foundations of Ionia when these summoners exist that can bzip and poof, she has to do a 30 minute political match.