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Do you ever miss the sound effects after a rework?

Vekkna·4/5/2018, 4:53:32 PM·7 votes·1,661 views

I played around the the new Irelia in training mode last night, and the first thing I noticed was how much I miss the sound effects on her old skills, particularly Q with her old emote. It was loud, bold, very distinct, and even startling when she engaged on you unexpectedly. Now it's much softer, less metallic, and sounds more electronic.

The first time I noticed this was with Katarina's update. I was never very good with her, and I'm usually drawn to much flashier VFX. It was actually her sound effects that I fell in love with because I thought they sounded incredibly cool. In her update, her Q and E completely changed, and her W (now passive) was toned down. Now Shunpo sounds like laser tag.

Evelynn's update was the first time I really noticed how iconic sounds can be for a champ. They replaced Ravage with Whiplash. As you would expect, Whiplash sounds like a whip. It doesn't sound like Evelynn. I (and perhaps most players) associated Evelynn with that loud Ravage sound effect because you heard her before you saw her. Maybe the adrenaline spikes and jumping in my seat created an unusual association between the Ravage sound and Evelynn as a champ, but I definitely considered that sound to be very iconic for Eve.

I feel like these champs lost something special with their SFX changes, kit changes aside. Is this a common sentiment, and should Riot have more care for it in the future? Or is it no big deal?

10 Comments

RiotRiotKarateMonkey4/6/2018, 12:16:37 AM5 votes

Hey Vekkna, I am a sound designer on the Champion update team and have done a few reworks. When we take on a rework we know there is a lot of sentiment for the champion we are updating. Sometimes the abilities and shape language change in the kit which require a change sonically as well. We do care about this and it is a big deal so we try to keep what is the iconic essence of that Champion and give it an updated version of that.

Mordepool4/5/2018, 8:22:21 PM2 votes

Womp!
I haven't heard this sound effect since Mordes Rework. 3 years ago. I still miss it. Real Morde mains know what I'm talking about

Poop Jelly4/6/2018, 2:48:58 PM1 votes

I MISS POPPY OLD VOICE SO MUCH IT'S OVERWHELMING

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Ultîma4/6/2018, 4:17:32 PM1 votes

It depends for which champion you're talking about. Older champions like Sion, Warwick or Taric had really dated effects that were extremely underwhelming to begin with, all of which I think were elevated by their reworks.

I do agree with Irelia's Q sound though, it had a visceral impact to it which made it feel extremely powerful compared to the more graceful "swoosh" of the new one. That being said, I think Irelia's new E, W and R sound infinitely more satisfying than before. Honestly listen when those skills land a hit, you definitely feel the "umph".