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The champion design goal is currently flawed, and that's why League has problems with toxicity.

KellenGrace·11/14/2014, 10:08:32 AM·2 votes·987 views

Okay, so let me just preface this by saying you may disagree, but I ask you to at least consider whether this point is acceptable before tossing it out in favor of current design.

To put it succinctly, current champion design is geared around feeling powerful, feeling good, feeling like you matter. That's fine, but it leaves out a very important game goal that profoundly affects the way League is perceived and the way League players interact. The idea is good. It is admirable, and makes for a positive experience, though a very conditional one. As I look at characters, more and more I begin to realize that this is the only dictating goal behind champions; to feel good when you're doing well. Yasuo, played properly, makes you feel like you are the wind-samurai, dashing between targets and knocking enemies into the air like so many rag dolls. Lee Sin darts back and forth, giving you the genuine feel of a highly skilled being, excellently trained to be the most mobile, terrifying force on the battlefield when he dashes out of the jungle. Thresh gives you all the pleasure of a being able to trap his opponents like terrified mice, and drag them back into your influence if they are foolish enough to run. So on and so on. This is true for the vast majority of the champions out right now, and that's great. It provides a positive experience in a very particular way. But here's the thing; there are a number of champions (and this becomes increasingly true with the hyper-mobile, difficult to target metadesign that Riot has thrown themselves into full tilt) that simply feel miserable to play against. And that's a problem. If you are upset by the very act of losing, the principle of not being the best ever all the time, you need to look at your competitive spirit, because even the best of the best lose sometimes, and that's not bad. If there are champions who by design simply feel miserable to play against, however, you have locked onto a deeply problematic aspect of a game's design. This has been a problem with the design team for a long, long time, too. I'll admit, when I started, I loved playing as Teemo. More and more, over time, I have had to admit, though, that it is absolutely miserable for the other players on the map the moment he's dropped into play. We all acknowledge that. Then there's Zilean, who I appreciate they're reworking, but his ultimate makes you genuinely feel like you've just wasted a huge amount of time raising a champion back to full health with little consequence beyond the dropping of a fairly low cooldown ultimate. Thresh, as mentioned previously, is overwhelmingly disheartening to play against. Even if you dodge his chains over and over again, it is exhausting and tedious to spend so much time just dodging a single move that isn't particularly hard to get out of the way of but makes the ensuing fight feel cheap and unsatisfying for everyone but thresh. The same is true, perhaps even moreso, of Blitzcrank. The point is, a game is intended to be enjoyable, at the end of the day. I appreciate that some of these champions make for really interesting plays, but when players enter the game feeling agitated simply because an opposing champion is going to suck the joy out of half of their game, it makes for a clear precedent of underlying toxic temptation. If Riot is really serious about actually making this game enjoyable for everyone, they need to playtest for each champion to not only feel good to play as, but also feel good to play AGAINST. Keep in mind, I'm not at all saying we should vanilla champions throughout. That's not the point here. I believe each champion can be given a unique, enjoyable identity WITHOUT making playing against them an absolute chore. You may disagree with me on my assessment of one champion or another, but you do have to admit that there are champions that you and others you know find absolutely soul-sucking to play against. So what do you guys think? Should the design team extend some effort to make this additional requirement be part of their philosophy? Or is it just fine the way it is now, and I'm making a big deal out of nothing? Leave some comments, I want to hear your thoughts.

2 Comments

Mahnigguh11/14/2014, 1:32:24 PM2 votes

i don't think anything you said is wrong. But i also think you are trying to justify our extremely terrible community. It's the players responsibility to learn counterplay, not riots job to make less scary annoying champs. Players rage always when i toss out blitz bans in b5 but then they lose bot lane and ask why i didn't ban him. its not riots fault people suck -.-

ShogunWolflux11/14/2014, 1:19:21 PM1 votes

I think another point worth mentioning here is the construct of power itself. Simply put, the idea of power is relative and can only be measured against how it measures up to others' 'power'. In that sense, to make a champion feel 'powerful' - it has to be stronger than the rest. That isn't to say that every champion is overpowered relative to every other champion, nay, that would be impossible, but it is to say that from a design perspective, the construct of making a champion feel "strong" is wrong as a goal. It should be the corollary to skill. Take Lee Sin for example. As a champion he is supposed to be that martial artist who "darts back and forth, giving you the genuine feel of a highly skilled being, excellently trained to be the most mobile, terrifying force." However, he feels that way only when played well - if one does not use his kit correctly and understand his role relative to say team fight initiation or how lee should be interacting with the enemy team, he won't feel overpowered. His kit in and of itself is not 'stronger' - it's the skill of the player that makes his kit feel as his champion should be designed to be. That should be the design goal that riot undertakes - making champions' kits feel as they should be when they are played skillfully. In that sense, many aspects of the game could be considered 'unskillful' - landing one blitz or thresh hook isn't far too difficult at all, however they are often the deciding factors in team fights or skirmishes. These are the champions who feel unfair to play against. Where something incredibly small becomes the deciding factor of the game. Where stepping on that one mushroom you couldn't see kills you. Where one champion got within 550 range and put a bomb on your head that you often can't do anything to deal with. At the same time - from the perspective of the player playing teem or zilean, As KellenGrace said - they are incredibly satisfying. you feel like that swift ranger laying traps for your enemies and that powerful mage who need only be near you to blow you up. The issue here is that these things are instant gratification of the champions' personifications - the factor that lee sin needs to feel like lee sin, the skill, while is not completely lacking - it's strongly diluted. Champions should be designed with kits that require skill to be rewarding - as opposed to having high impact abilities that at the same time are... small. I feel like i didn't completely iterate my point well, and i apologize. I think i'll revise this at a later time today and strive to be a bit more clear.