"Fewer than 2% of champion concepts make it into the full game"

ModCaptainMårvelous·Oct 15, 2014·10 votes·2,234 views

Source, Third Paragraph from the bottom.

So...how does this make everyone feel? Do you feel like your champion concepts now need more work? Do you feel that this is irrelevant as your ideas are worth attempting? Is this a wake-up call to you?

I wanna hear your thoughts...and maybe get a Rioter for some context if we're talking fully fleshed out champions with kits, lore, art, etc or if we're just dealing with a case of that "2%" being the concepts that make it out of the idea stage.

31 Comments

MrBuffingtonOct 15, 20145 votes

I've read many times from other Reds that most champion designers don't browse through the community champion concepts; I mostly look at concepts as a fun thing to do rather than a serious attempt to pitch an idea to Riot.

The NeverworldOct 16, 20144 votes

I've created over 50 Champion Concepts (Fully fleshed out with quotes, ability description, Explanation, Lore, everything). I am creating Concepts since last year march. None of them was taken. Maybe something has inspired Riot, but I can't say for sure because there are over 100.000 other Concepts worth reading.

People shouldn't create Champions so that Riot can take them. For me it makes fun to create a Champion even though it's just in my mind and on paper.
I believe people working for Riot Games neither do it just for the money - but for the fun it makes. Sure, it can be stressfull from time to time, but stress includes when working for something that makes fun. Sometimes it must take your nerves because your actions are immersive.

UracleOct 16, 20143 votes

You guys are taking the quote out of context of the full article. They're not talking about champion concepts from the forums, they're talking about champions made in the Thunderdome at Riot

FlintfallOct 16, 20143 votes

Not just thunderdome, but just their concepts in general. I'm assuming a concept can be as simple as one drawing for these numbers.

LyuniOct 15, 20142 votes

I'm sure their job requires them to come up with tons of champion variations and they're selectively eliminated.

Most champion suggestions are pretty bad anyway, no offense guys.

LordTekronOct 15, 20142 votes

Clearly we need a champ contest, everyone sends in their champ designs, Riot picks the best 10, and then we vote for which one will be made ingame. May not help with that 2% thing but it's better than nothing right?

GunpointOct 16, 20142 votes

Alot of the champion concepts are pretty unoriginal, this also includes troll ones, a lot of the champion concepts also get adapted into champions too though. For example I remember seeing a champion concept that was very similar to Zac but with a different name. Also, Riot needs to find the new champion a place in the lore. Alot of the champion concepts are really annoying and are just generic anime characters with generic anime names like... Yasuo. Look at him... Yasuo

KalastRavenOct 16, 20145 votes

Anime characters aren't generic. At least, not any more generic than anything else.

junglerboy16Oct 16, 20141 votes

Except that every single anime concept that ever gets posted on this forum is virtually the same and/or a clone of some character on a show that the OP obsesses over. This is not an anime styled game, anime characters should not be in this game. They have there place in other games, but just don't mesh or fit into the world of League of Legends.

KinjishiOct 16, 20143 votes

There's no reason they can't have a place here. Some yordles have heads that look like a football (i.e. Poppy - head looks like Stewie from Family Guy). Anime/manga characters can have a more realistic physique than that (of course, art styles vary widely).

People have commented that some skins have a comic book style to them. What is wrong with the game having multiple art styles and expressions in it? Nothing - as long as they are not too obscene or offensive.

Baron Von BanginOct 16, 20144 votes

Barn is pretty original.

The NeverworldOct 16, 20143 votes

Yasuo is no anime name. It's a real name, but isn't anymore used in japan at this time. Earlier, in a other era, it was a frequent name.

BourmegarOct 16, 20142 votes

Yh Yasuo is also a changed word, it means rightheus (or something else I don't know so correct me if I am wrong) Anime uses alot of these sort of names like for example: Sakura Harano, that is a name that translates into "Cherry blossom field".

BUT it is no crime to use japanese words as names here in lol I encourage it :) we also have normal names like Katarina or Lucian so names used in Anime should be welcome to.

The5lackerOct 17, 20141 votes

If by "anime" you mean "all of japan."

And "most other languages too." Most names have some root word. Finding the root tends to be a pain in the ass, though. Unless you're looking at someone named, like, Carver. Pretty easy to find the root there.

AFK PushOct 15, 20141 votes

What has to be realized about that 98%, is that a lot of champion concepts weren't made with that intention in the first place. There are plenty of parodies of other universes characters, and there are just as many joke concepts as well. On top of those, there are just as many ideas that aren't that original, and look like or resemble another champion or combination of two or more. Taking those out, then yes it does make sense.

Grand MedicOct 15, 20141 votes

Quality over quantity is really being put to work here. Though I do think revisiting some of the other 98% of the concepts they have and figuring out how to do them better wouldn't be bad.

PhoenixOfHeavenOct 16, 20141 votes

I Cant wait to see atleast 1 fanmade champ to b released. who do u think it would be? I saw a thread about some Undead Priestess with 2 Riot posts.

BourmegarOct 16, 20141 votes

Could you pls give us a link to it?

The NeverworldOct 16, 20141 votes

I think he talks about this Banshee crap that got hyped even though it has the same abilities already used by other Champions, but just slightly changed.

PhoenixOfHeavenOct 16, 20141 votes

Could you pls give us a link to it?

Its on the forums, not the boards.

http://forums.na.leagueoflegends.com/board/showthread.php?t=3883740

Meep ManOct 16, 20141 votes

It gives anyone making concepts an idea of how many concepts they make will probably be good ones :D

junglerboy16Oct 16, 20141 votes

This is taking into account every single iteration of every champion they ever do. If you read the thing they posted about developing Azir, each time they changed ANY ability in his kit, they counted it as a new champ. This does not mean only 2% of base ideas for a champ (i.e. giant killer penguin, or, purple wizard who shoots cotton candy) make it, it means only 2% including every little kit tweak they ever make gets onto live. I don't ever expect any champ concepts I ever do to really be seriously considered in their entirety, but I enjoy making it, and there is a high chance that at least some of my ideas will be used in some way shape or form in some other champ, even if it is an iteration that never gets onto live.

Riot mostly uses this as an external brainstorming area. We give them all of the different little ideas we think would be amazing, and they take the bits and pieces that work and make champions with it. This is their sandbox, they sift through for the good stuff, and only occasionally do they find a gold nugget that is worth leaving alone as a concept.

BourmegarOct 16, 20142 votes

Alot of champions also started in a different concept, Vi was first only a female engineer but now she is a baddass enforcer with 2 huge fists Quinn was first a Male who rides a eagle and now she is a female who works with her eagle. Elise was first only a spider who was wearing a dress and umberella and stuff and now she is a human/spider. and then we have Azir who was first just a sand mage and now he is a emperor who commands his sand soldiers to damage others.

So it can be that alot of concepts just transformed into the 2% right?

RockmanOct 16, 20141 votes

[deleted]

BourmegarOct 16, 20141 votes

Ectually there is a chance that ideas from our concepts do get used in a different form. Meddler once told me that the idea behind Orianna's was based on a fan made concept of a champion that manipulates a fireball the same way as orianna uses her bal.

The NeverworldOct 16, 20143 votes

There was once a Reaper in 2011 who used to collect souls of fallen enemies to strengthen his abilities. 2013 Thresh came.
There was once a suggestion for a manly Support in 2013. 2014 Braum came.

If you look at the 100.000 concepts, not even 2% managed to inspire Riot Games.

BourmegarOct 16, 20143 votes

There was also a swordsman named Oz who realy inspired Yasuo, both have indentical lore and simillar looks heck the creator was named Yone who appears in the original lore.

We also got Leona because we demanded a female tank.

So I say to ppl to not feel discouraged because first of all making champs here is fun and maybe just maybe the idea of kit gets made in game even if the chance is only 2%.

Luckyghost91Oct 16, 20141 votes

In my opinion, once your idea is out there it can be chosen at anytime. I'm going to college for multimedia design. So i mean hopefully one day i can either work at riot or along side them sometime in my life to create champions that are fair both offensively and defensively. That's what i want fair champions. unlike 'Helmet Bro' and other ridiculous concepts out there. take the feed back other can give me and learn where my champions can be nerfed or buffed before i know riot can even consider them. so honestly i don't think most ideas on these forum are close to riot standards. Everyone can improve. I just hope i do!

AmightyTOct 16, 20141 votes

I don't mind if they only go with 2%, but I do want to know how they go about picking that 2%

LuckyRedenOct 17, 20141 votes

Dude, he's talking about Riot created champion concepts, not even community created. Riot has said so themselves, the community creations are just for fun and are never taken into consideration. The amount of popularity a single concept would need to even get glimpsed at by riot is insane.

The5lackerOct 17, 20141 votes

People are extraordinarily egotistical and delusional if they think that their concept is going to be chosen for development not only over everyone else's on the forums, but over whatever projects the current design and development teams are currently working on. The people working for Riot are people too, and I can't even begin to imagine the number of champions left on the cutting room floor. To demand that my concept takes precedence over all others? I'd want someone to smash my face in with a brick if I ever became that self-important.

I design champion concepts as a thought experiment. For fun. I never expect anything I ever contribute to this forum to be taken into the game, or even used as an inspiration point. Because to do so is so laughably naive and lacks any remote awareness of the world around me. News flash: There are HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS of concepts out there. And of course due to Sturgeon's Law, 90% of those are, well, terrible. Lets be honest. But even 10% of a hundred thousand is still 10,000, and if you honestly think that all of those concepts should be champions, quite frankly, you're insane. Completely and utterly. There is a reason that in 5 years we've got a roster just over 120. It isn't because Riot is short on ideas. I can Garen tee you that.