Match champion icon with its skin?

SelflessTeammate·Oct 12, 2014·35 votes·9,078 views

This is a fairly simple inconsistency that is a minor annoyance. Champion icons or portraits, whether during selection or gameplay, always match the original splash art instead of a given skin. I don't know if this bothers other people, but it would be nice to see a portrait reflect its skin during selection and while playing.

31 Comments

Deep Terror NamiOct 12, 201426 votes

I'd love to have some of my favorite skins be the portrait that shows up (River Spirit Nami), but I think there is a very good reason that it won't happen;

If you have different icons for the same champion, there will be many people (particularly newer ones) who will not even recognize what it is and it will cause unwarranted confusion in game.

There are plenty of skins that make the splash look unrecognizable compared to the original.

JunkοOct 12, 20146 votes

How about only the portrait on your HUD, or a toggle (since i would prefer Shacos new splash rather than any of his skins)?

Also i think skins still confuse new people even without changed portraits.

Deep Terror NamiOct 13, 20147 votes

I'm not gonna lie, I couldn't tell the difference between J4 and Xin Zhao when I started. The Warring Kingdoms skins didn't help.

KahtiOct 13, 20143 votes

I'm not gonna lie, I couldn't tell the difference between J4 and Xin Zhao when I started. The Warring Kingdoms skins didn't help.

I actually had an issue like this. I was watching a video and saw this weird giant purple and green champ walking around. I was so confused. Then after a second or two I realized... WHO DAFUQ USES CORAL MALPHITE?!

SelflessTeammateOct 13, 20144 votes

To make things easier for the developers, this could simply reflect your own champion on your own HUD, and hence would be equal for everyone else, as it only reflects you and only you see yourself that way in-game. Any confusion is then avoided, and the problem is simplified to nothing more than a personalization option.

It would also increase the value of skins in general, at least for me, as the portrait alone for some emphasizes a selling point, for me. (Bladecraft Orianna immediately comes to mind--those gigantic blue eyes are very cool.)

I consider that reasonable and fair, and worth the time and effort.

ChaoscontrolOct 13, 20141 votes

That's how they have done it with Spirit Guard Udyr. When I play him I see the SGU Icon everywhere instead of the normal Udyr icon, but rest sees the normal icon.

RiotPhreakOct 13, 201417 votes

I asked about this myself a few years ago. The response was that it made it a bit harder to understand what was going on. Basically, instead of memorizing ~120 champion icons, it was memorizing closer to 600, counting all the skins. So seeing "Oh that firey champion icon is coming down the river" and going... oh that's Volcanic Wukong, not Brand? Fffff...

Thoughts and opinions can always change, but I found myself siding with that opinion as well. It didn't seem like that big of a deal to have the consistent icon since the small clarity gains felt worthwhile.

Edit: Basically what Valkyrie Witch said.

exiledFromBadmenOct 13, 20142 votes

I agree with you. Clarity is the key point.

What I want to say: Hi, Mr. Phreak!

Garlyle WildsOct 13, 20145 votes

This is basically the same reason for why Co-op vs AI only uses skins at Intermediate, and not beforehand. Which I completely get an understand, it's definitely a visibility/clarity thing.

That said, for those of us who do feel familiar with the Champions, it'd be fantastic to have an opt-in option, much like for All Chat. This way, for those who wouldn't feel comfortable they don't have to, and for those of us who are comfortable and would rather have the cohesion we have the choice.

HopeslayerOct 14, 20141 votes

I asked about this myself a few years ago. The response was that it made it a bit harder to understand what was going on. Basically, instead of memorizing ~120 champion icons, it was memorizing closer to 600, counting all the skins. So seeing "Oh that firey champion icon is coming down the river" and going... oh that's Volcanic Wukong, not Brand? Fffff...

Thoughts and opinions can always change, but I found myself siding with that opinion as well. It didn't seem like that big of a deal to have the consistent icon since the small clarity gains felt worthwhile.

Edit: Basically what Valkyrie Witch said.

in game makes sense to keep the default, its hard enough when champs get new portraits on a patch.

lobby only seems more reasonable, would add a little something when your team can see your skin pic in lobby too or when you're flipping through multiple skins while your champ is picked to show the other team your dominance. and for those of us who only play with skins when we buy them for a champ we start to think of the skin pic being that champ.

Duke AnaxOct 14, 20141 votes

I actually had the opposite problem at first, when i wasn't familiar with all the faces.

I was like who is that comming down the river, he is not even in game? Oh wait thats vulcanic wukong.

JunkοOct 14, 20141 votes

That's why it should be a toggle, or the person that is playing the champ only (which was requested 1000000 times in this thread)

LuckyRedenOct 15, 20141 votes

Thats why it should be an optional thing, or even if its something that you feel that strongly about, it could be that only lvl 30 players can do so. As a person who loves skins, I feel like i wouldn't have a problem with it. It also gives skins more value and makes it easier to tell who is using what skin. And if I am having trouble, i can just check scoreboard and it will say right there who is which champion. As riot would say, "Its just a small quality of life thing".

DicersonOct 12, 201411 votes

Make it an optional thing, so newer players who don't have the champs memorized yet don't confuse themselves, off by default, can be turned on. Would be an option that says "See skinned portraits" or something

wolfaxOct 12, 20143 votes

I think the minimap icons should always stay the same. I could see the portrait in the bottom left being different though.

UnvictusOct 13, 20141 votes

Yea, minimap icons should stay the same for confusion purposes. Right now, ultimate skins are the only skins that have the bottom left portrait in game reflect the skin, so I don't see riot making every skin the same way. I guess you could say its one of the things you get for paying so much for that tier of a skin.

Emperor CynricOct 12, 20143 votes

I think there should be an option to choose whether or not you want icons to reflect what skin you are using (at least for your visuals not the other players). the option would be an on off switch to choose whether or not you want all players icons to reflect their chosen skin. i have been playing a while now and i can match up what skin, is what champion that i am looking at. this would satisfy both new players and veteran players. i really want to see my icon astronautilus

MikayleOct 13, 20143 votes

Hey Phreak, couldn't we just make it client side for the icon you see then? THat way its pleasing to the player but doesn't ruin anyones day?

MOstly the bottom left icon drives me nuts

JimmyyyOct 12, 20142 votes

This really does bother me, because when I am using a skin like Dragonslayer Vayne, Vayne no longer has those annoying red goggles, she has a dragons mouth around her face. I would like to see the skin and icon matching for all skins, like PFE and SGU do.

LuckyRedenOct 12, 20142 votes

Lol yes thank you! I said this weeks ago but it got downvoted once in the beginning and no one saw it, thats a prob with boards. But thank you for agreeing with me!

Baal HadedOct 12, 20142 votes

Riot won't do this because they want game clarity. Honestly, it sort of adds an unnecessary mental factor for people to not get tripped up by looking at the mini map and momentarily not noticing who the champion they are playing against is, which can influence decision making in a negative way. You could argue that that's just another layer of skill in this game, but I don't really think that is the case when recognizing your opponents has nothing to do with champion mechanics, in-game knowledge, and the quality of a leadership role.

I don't personally think I would have a problem with it, but I'm not everyone. I don't think this should be implemented just to keep the game more fair, as cool as it would be to have a marquis of your favorite skin for everyone else to see on the map. Besides, some of the skins would just look terrible as icons. The proportions of their bodies to their environment might make for some awkwardly cropped icons.

If anything, it would be best to have it as a personal aesthetic for you as a player, but I think that's a lot of money Riot would have to invest in player personalization instead of focusing on more dire aspects of the game, such as game balance and fixing client/ server issues.

Autrah FangOct 13, 20141 votes

I think that's a lot of money Riot would have to invest in player personalization instead of focusing on more dire aspects of the game, such as server issues.

lol that's funny... Riot working on server issues... i would pay good money to see that, but it's never gonna happen. the servers are just gonna get worse and worse

M0b1usOct 12, 20141 votes

It would be interesting to have it as an option for the player to decide. Just make it so that only the skin owner can see their skin icon while others see the base.

GlendorOct 12, 20141 votes

This needs more attention. There's no reason why it shouldn't be like this. And if it's too confusing, just make that an optional thing.

flibitydooOct 13, 20141 votes

default hero look on the left, arcana item hero look on the right. This is how they would appear on the minimap.

jQueryOct 13, 20141 votes

That sucks, and i thought that they only got colored pins on the mini map?! when did dota get hero icons on the mini map? Do they still have colors? Around the icon or something?

And Dota 2 is actually making game-play changes with updates that differ from DotA all Stars?!

EDIT: The only thing it would be good to adopt from Dota2 is to show moving directions on the champs in the mini map, it wont make the same difference since LoL does not have turn-ratio but still it will reduce time lost on map glances.

flibitydooOct 14, 20141 votes

That sucks, and i thought that they only got colored pins on the mini map?! when did dota get hero icons on the mini map? Do they still have colors? Around the icon or something?

They've had it since the beginning as far as I know.

In game, if you hold down the alt button, besides putting a large arrow on your hero to help you get your bearings straight, it will also change all minimap icons into the heroes, which is useful for telling who exactly is going to gank you (which is obviously useful because Pudge ganks are completely different from Spirit Breaker)

HopeslayerOct 13, 20141 votes

it bothers me, when i use trundle im looking for my good old dirty troll pic, not the blue thing.

and other champs i think of the skin i use when looking for them on the list

it would be nice if the last used skin is what showed up for the champ portrait in champ select, it shows it when you mouse over, but not the pic in the sea of faces

Clone OOct 13, 20141 votes

Yeah! I always want to see Volcanic Wukong in the portrait during champions selection and especially during the game. But of course, we should have options like turn on or off. I had this idea since I started to play LOL and during consideration of purchasing Volcanic Wukong skin.

jQueryOct 13, 20141 votes

Its gonna be bad to loose time guessing who did u just saw pass by your ward in the jungle. I have problems with hew splash art icons, the mini map is gonna get useless with skin icons.