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I'm lost on the Akali VGU design. It invades other champs' visual space (Jinx) and isn't Akali.

Bern·7/16/2018, 5:30:27 PM·5 votes·1,543 views

You basically went from BALANCE NINJA to rogue edgelord ninja with Jinx tattoos. (And yes, those tattoos are way too much like Jinx's, especially considering how similar the amount of skin they're showing is. I think anyone who already plays the game would feel the similarity immediately.) I don't even know how this is supposed to appeal to the same set of people.

And I'm completely lost on why she had to get a weapon change when the double weapon was thematic for BALANCE NINJA. Now we're just running around with daggers (not even kunai btw -- you'd think it'd at least be kunai given how Naruto ninja this shit looks) and she doesn't even use her original weapon a lot of the time.

Also dreading the loss of Blood Moon's splash art now, which was actually the best splash art in the game. Feelsbad.

I don't think the design is bad. But it's definitely, definitely not in a similar designspace as old Akali visually, and treads too much into Jinx's visual space. It doesn't appeal to the same people at all. She was an anime tiddy ninja and now she'd probably look at home in Kill Bill. Hey, I like both. But I'm just kind of lost on how we went from A to B.

8 Comments

Cetri7/16/2018, 5:51:47 PM6 votes

Honestly, I didn't think about Jinx's tattoos at all until other people mentioned them, and I still feel it doesn't copy the design THAT much.

Lintu Puck7/16/2018, 5:59:10 PM6 votes

I think I am one of the only people that did not immediately think "Ninja Jinx" when looking at new Akali look people, just because she is slim with exposed skin covered in tattoos does not make them the same. 1 - their character silhouettes are completely different 2 - the amount of tattoo is different 3 - they aren't even the same tattoo.

Akali is also not encroaching on Jinx's visual base. Akali is more close to Anime Yakuza Ninja now more then ever armed with damn near every ninja tool you can think of, while Jinx is pure Chaos Hot Topic Teenager with firearms.

As for her path this new Akali is more along the lines of a Teenager/Young adult heading out to find their own path to things. She has been trained by Shen in one way, has seen how Zed does things, and now having mastered various weapons and tricks she has left Shen's side to find how she fits into things and find her own Balance.

Phieldworker7/16/2018, 5:49:04 PM3 votes

The weapon change is because they want her to be a ninja that has mastered many weapons. She uses a sickle, kunais, smoke bomb and shurikens. And they want her to be rogue so this is why she doesn’t look as cookie cutter mortal combat.

Linna Excel7/16/2018, 5:52:17 PM1 votes

The answer is simple. The art teams that handle reworks are trying to kill the game faster than the balance team and Reav3 knows it.

Kanzler7/16/2018, 5:54:08 PM1 votes

As long as they keep the side boob.

TheGreatRasputin7/18/2018, 7:42:42 PM1 votes

We already have a BALANCE NINJA. Shen is a thing, remember? Also, Akali is barely like Jinx. True, both have a tattoo on their arm, but one is at least a B cup (Akali) while the other has no tits whatsoever.

By the way, kunai were actually closer to digging spades than throwing knives. Just so y'all know.