Constructive Criticism of TFT

I genuinely like the concept behind this game mode. I like the fact that I can do it while doing other things w/o it impacting the outcome (too many times I do an SR an I get an important call I wasn't expecting and have to try and navigate the game while focusing on the call). I like the fact that I don't have other players screaming at one another or at me for mistakes. I like the CONCEPT of a mix of RNG with strategy to impact the games outcome and like using familiar characters as part of that game and creating a synergy between those characters to impact the outcome.

However, in its current form, the game is far too reliant on RNG and has some really clumsy mechanics. I had a streak the other day where I "won" (placed in the top 3) several games in a row and thought I had stumbled onto a winning strategy. Then I "lost" (placed in spots 5-7) several games in a row using the IDENTICAL strategy all b/c I simply couldn't put together a decent mix of items and characters. Also, encountered several bugs (e.g. a zephyr not taking a character out of the game or my characters just chillin in the middle of the screen while they die).. but this is a beta, so those types of things I presume will be fixed. I wanted to focus on some things that could make this game far more enjoyable and up the amount of strategy that is involved.

I'm just going to go in order that things happen. Maybe some of these things are already planned or have been completely rejected. I don't know.. I am guilty of not reading developers notes and upcoming patch notes, so I don't know what is or is not planned. But, since I had a few minutes, I just wanted to share some thoughts in the hopes of improving the game.

1. Improve the carousel mechanic. This is cute, by extremely clumsy and leads to some annoying results, especially later in the game. Your turn is coming up and you see the character you want, but it rotates to the opposite side of the board b4 you are set free allowing the other person (who actually has more points than you) to grab it. Why not allow each person a few seconds to pick their desired character by clicking from a list on the left side of the screen and then the little legends can run and collect it. This takes one RNG element out of the game, as your choice of character won't be impacted by where your character was randomly placed, but instead is based upon your actual score in that match. Keep the current mechanic for the first pick ONLY.

2. Allow items to be removed from characters WITHOUT selling them. Because this game is so dependent upon having the correct item/character combos, having the items be permanently merged to the characters just adds ANOTHER level of RNG. Yes, I want the on the carousel, but it has a and my current has a and makes no sense on gnar, but if I get a 3rd these will automatically combine whether I like it or not, unless I am lucky enough to get an item I can put on the . Again, this is just about tilting a little bit away from the RNG.

3. Why not some variation of an item shop? I've had games where the ONLY items I get are from the carousel. Haven't had it happen since the mystery boxes, but that has only been a short time. Since they are RNG as well, I presume it is still possible to go a whole game w/o getting an item drop. I may be flush with cash, but we all know that items rule the day here. With the carousel mechanic, even if you are last, you might not get that one critical item you need b/c it may be on the other side when two people are released.

4. Expand the "bench". This is going to become a bigger and bigger problem as characters are added. Many players adapt to each game. I try not to go in with a preconceived, "I'm doing an assassin comp" type attitude and instead work with what the game is offering, yeah, I have my favorites, but I try to be adaptable. However, b/c there is SO MUCH RNG involved I will sometimes wind up with spots eaten up by "maybe" characters. If people want to burn gold on maybe characters, let them. 1 more row would be nice. Along this same line, you shouldn't be punished for upgrading characters. If buy a and sell it, it costs 2g and you get 2g back. However, if buy 3 's and sell the silver back, you get 4g back. If 2+2 = 4 why does 2+2+2 ALSO = 4? Why Rito, why?

5. Allow Bans for Gold. I'm not building sorcerer or void, I don't want to see again, but you keep showing him to me. Allow "bans" at an increasing gold rate. 2g for the first ban. 4g for the second, 8g for the 3rd, etc, something like that. Again, this doesn't ELIMINATE RNG, it just decreases the dependency on it a little bit.

6. Maybe a couple of character trading opportunities? I hate the fact that as the game goes on the chances of finishing that gold tier 1 or 2 character becomes almost impossible. You now have 3 slots taken up on your board by A silver and 2 bronze 's yet you have a small % chance of ever finishing. It shouldn't be just a character shop, but some way to help fill in those holes in your builds again to take SOME of the RNG out.

Right now it feels like TFT is 90% luck and 10% skill. There are certain general guidelines you can follow to increase your chances of winning, but ultimately, someone with absolutely no knowledge can win a match. I know that b/c I let my 11 year old play. He knows next to nothing about league. But, he came in first place in his second game ever b/c he ended up wild/shapeshifter build with a gold gnar with 2 's and a and a silver swain with and a . It was both sad and funny to watch and I wish I had recorded it! I've played dozens of games and never gotten a gold T4.

I think with some minor tweaks (such as those listed above), you can get it closer to a 60/40 split, which would be nice. It would still allow for blind luck to work, but give greater rewards to people who actually want to deep dive into the game.