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Meta Hasn't Changed in 3+ Years ... will it ever?

Korica Riftaxe·10/15/2014, 9:44:44 PM·2 votes·936 views

Lots of people playing now-a-days might not know it, but there was actually a time, before the meta, when you did not always have Tanky Bruiser Top, AP Mid, ADC/Support Bot with a Jungler in every single game.

That all seemed to change after the very first Dreamhack tournament and Season 1 of real competitive play. It was around that time that this meta came into being, because pro players discovered that this type of team setup gave them the best chance of winning. And it seems like Riot has shaped their game around it, because almost every single balance change they have made since then has been specifically designed to cater to, and reinforce, this particular team setup.

For me personally, it was what killed the game for me. My friends and I loved to run silly or ridiculous team comps, but it never works when your opponents are tryharding with the meta setup, which seems objectively superior. Not to mention how toxic the community has become regarding the issue. 2 seconds into a match every player will start calling out their meta role - ADC Bot, AP Mid, etc. I've played quite a bit of other MOBAs, and I can safely say, that doesn't seem to happen anywhere else. You occasionally get a person who really wants mid, or a pair of people who really want to lane together, but people don't start aggressively calling out their team positions within seconds of the lobby being set up. And more importantly, for me, no other MOBA has such rigid team setup requirements. Sure, you **want **a carry, but if you don't have one, you can just try for a split push setup, or get tons of AOE-Ultimates and push as 5.

What are you guys' thoughts on this?

PS - Extra note. Summoner Spells are supposed to offer "choice" but 90% of players use Flash. Is Riot going to just throw in the towel at some point and give everybody Flash as a base ability and just give us ONE Summoner Spell?

6 Comments

Sailor Mint10/15/2014, 10:11:40 PM2 votes

Before making a thread on a topic I'd suggest that you look up the definition of meta and the reasoning behind its existence. The meta shifts slightly every patch.

All I can say is, as long as people want to win, they'll do whatever it takes to do so. There's nothing wrong with off-meta stuff, as long as you and your team are on the same page.

Salidfingers10/16/2014, 2:06:48 AM2 votes

Lane Meta will probably not change unless they shift objectives around even if LCS go double jungle or 2 top.

Champions do change all the time in lanes and not every champion pick flash. Example: Teleport/Ghost is vary powerful on Olaf

kanacho10/15/2014, 10:03:35 PM1 votes

I have played since the very release of league (back at the beginning of season 1), and I can say a couple things at least on this subject.

1 The Meta does go under changes, just not drastic changes like you are suggesting. For example, we saw a change this season with the champs who were going top. Things like Maokai/Malphite/Alistar started to be a top-lane candidate just as much as the classic Riven pick and what not. Given this, the meta does not change signifcantly, and that is mainly due to the core structure of the game. The basic structure of the meta is completely based on what the game allows, and what is the most efficient/effective things to do. We do see some pretty ridiculous things sometimes, but when you boil it all down, it tends to be the same roles going every lane working towards the same objective. In order to DRASTICALLY change the meta, there would have to be some change in-game to make some other core structure more efficient and stable. It's pretty hard to stand up to the solid lane roles we have going already unless Riot changes the whole premise of Summoners Rift (and seeing how this game is very competitive, I don't think pulling the rug out from underneath everyone will go over so well).

2 The meta-game as it is, is more than likely never going to change so drastically unless some pro team does something super amazing that completely breaks the meta and then continue to WIN the game. It is unlikely that you are going to have such a powerful set-up that is ALSO as STABLE as the current meta-game and as you said, that's primarily because as soon as the meta-game was actually discovered, Riot supported that and essentially hardened the metal in the mold. There's very little possibility that the meta will change at all unless, other game modes are created/become competitive instead of only summoner's rift, or a Major Team pulls some absolutely ridiculous wins using an entirely out of the ordinary meta which then other major teams start to pick up and others start to try creating a sort of rippling effect which is what happened with the form of the meta we have now. Things like have 2 Junglers is fun and all, but it is not remotely feasible when it tries to stand the test of consistency. Nothing really can break the hardened meta that we have now, let alone put a dent it it, but with enough heat and pressure from high-tier games, and enough support from Riot, a change could potentially happen, but once more, it is highly unlikely that this could occur.

Personally I rather have about 3 major team forms (sort of functioning almost like a rock-paper scissor format but still maintaining skill as the most important factor) where there are multiple strategies in terms of how many people in each lane, and what roles go in each lane etc... that are extremely popular in the game, rather than having a Single meta where it's a match-up game where you try to mirror your opponent's while counter-picking their picks staying within the same relative roles. In a War, I wouldn't imagine people telling their soldiers to go with the same formation every single battle, or else they might get predictable. There has to be a little bit of changing it up at least, or else you might have to hope that your strategy is superior, or the enemies are using the same exact strategy also hoping that the opposition is worse at said strategy.

At this point, it pretty much Requires Riot taking the initiative to foster other strategies by supporting other role uses in new and unique ways. We have so many different champions right now, but they all fit within a very set series of roles. Why not have Riot create a new role, and foster said role in by supporting it with minor game changes offering it as an equally viable avenue to the meta we have now?

Hoi Im Temmo10/15/2014, 10:09:47 PM1 votes

Literally last week I convinced 4 random dudes I queued with to do 5 ADC's top lane, starting red pot, and just trying to rush a win.

We did win.

a few days ago, me and some friends played blitz, thresh, ryze, pantheon bot lane (we just wanted a bot of combos) - we won that too. If you cant find a way to break the meta and have fun, you just need to try harder.

Now: as to your question, "Will the meta change" - thats not the same as season 1. Season 1? There was NO meta. None. There were various strategies, but that was it.

Next, no matter what Riot does, there will for evermore BE a meta. This is because, people when playing a game, want to win, which naturally creates a competitive game play. So people will do what works, what wins. Riot could forcibly make the current meta not work....but to do so, would only change the meta to a new meta, not remove the meta.

So now, your complaint is that Riot doesn't FORCE players to completely relearn the game every season, for the sole sake of it being different. I'm sorry, but at that point, I'm having a hard time sympathizing with your complaint.

Akumu10/15/2014, 10:19:27 PM1 votes

Why do you care? There is nothing wrong with the meta. If you have a problem with it use teambuilder, thats why it exists.

Moreover trying to arrange different strategies in solo queue is extremely difficult, so if anything having a meta is better for this game.