Ranked Howling Abyss not quite ARAM
Look, I love ARAM. It's because the game forces everyone into a single lane, and the team fights can feel a little chessboard-y.
Sometimes with ARAM. You get stomped or just stomp over the enemy team. There is an appeal to it.
However, I think that Howling Abyss deserves ranked. It's still 5v5.
You could give Howling Abyss a draft pick mode. Everyone ban's five champions. Then from there go down the line of drafting your champion.
I also think Howling Abyss matches are more appealing to watch overall. You do have duels, and 1v5's, and great skill combo's or dodges.
It's kinda like watching a football game, with the ultimate touchdown destroying the Nexus.
I think part of what makes LoL toxic is that everyone focuses on their K/D/A a little to much. If we did view it as a team effort, all that would really matter is getting the nexus down. And with ARAM each death is just a tackle or fumble in which each player will get right back up again and can do better, because you have to die to buy. I honestly think that's one of the best things about ARAM.
You can only buy if you die. Let's think about that for a second.
That means the zed who just killed you, won't be as strong this time around since he doesn't have new items until he dies. It's almost like tag. A trade-off.
It would be an interesting design choice if something like that went to SR. Because, I think the community would completely change if you could only buy once dead and returning to the fountain did nothing. I know it sounds like a silly idea. But it would make each death become a back and forth instead of our current crazy snowball meta that kinda out strains most players via stress as the stakes are so high. I think you can still have a competitive game, but LoL should probably slow its pace.
But games are too long or; I won my lane but everyone else lost theirs and we lost. - With Howling Abyss, you only have one lane. It's the team's lane and the enemy lane. It's closer to a football field and watching a football game. Summoners Rift is trying to watch three foot ball games all at the same time and it has all these distractions along the way. Jungle camps and plants, dragons, scuttles, barons. Yeah it has that fantasy element to it. But what most people want to see are the team fights. They want to see the duels, the fights at baron or dragon.
With Howling Abyss, that's what you're doing already. Just trotting down mid with your team as it corrals you. You must fight the enemy. Here are your tools, go to battle.
But if it was 5v5 wouldn't people just pick the most OP Poke and go to battle with those teams?
Again you get bans, so you could ban Ziggs or Lux or etc. (Also I think bans should be seen by both teams, banning the same champion on both sides feels a little 'meh', whenever that happens.)
And drafting you could do in two styles:
Style 1: Any champion. This would make some really odd ball teams. Maybe all tanks, cc, or whatever the idea is.
Style 2:Your team is designated roles. And you can only play that role. So each team only gets 1 Tank, 1 Assassin, 1 Mage, 1 Support, 1 ADC. - This would make the mode a bit more balanced, and also perhaps interesting to watch. As balanced teams will give you better fights compared to unbalanced steamroll snowball-fests.
Anyways, Howling Abyss could completely have a ranked mode. It doesn't just have to be ARAM. I also think these games would be more enjoyable then SR ones. Because if you lost lane, you lost it together. With your team. The same as when your on the winning side - you did it with your team.
