Lucian, Lee Sin and the "Fanbase" Problem
Lucian is an example, as well as Lee Sin who reflect why Riot cannot correctly balance these champions. If Riot attempted to, they would be either;
- Accused of being "racist" or some other dumb excuse I've heard.
- The fanbase of these champs would throw a hissyfit and leave the game.
After looking at the last few years worth of patch notes. I have come to the conclusion that Riot are aware that nerfing some of the more "popular" choices, even when they are seriously broken (Lucian has no weak phase, his damage stays relevant throughout the game. Nerfing Tristana slightly made him come back to haunt us, again) would result in a loss of revenue. I am pretty sure they know that players are that fickle and if they suddenly lose their "freelo" (hate that word) champ, then they would rather rage quit rather then being forced to learn a champ with some level of balance.
However this is extremely negative because it turns League of Legends from what should be a "skill-based" game into a popularity contest. With the most liked and most played champions unable to be touched, anything more then a minor tweak (the Yasou nerf last patch was an example of that. We all know that his damage is the source of frustration however Riot ignored it) because it would spark an outrage that would lose Riot revenue.
I think we need to come down from our "Look at me, I'm Diamond I" attitudes and think for a moment. Is winning really that more important then balance? Would you like to win with dignity and pride, knowing it was a fair contest with ANY champ or would you prefer to steamroll and continue being a sheep to a "imaginary meta"? I doubt many people would really choose the first option but I felt that it was worth pointing out. We need to let Riot feel free to make the changes to champs that they want to make and then maybe we will get closer to more and more champs becoming viable, strong picks on the rift because variety is more interesting then seeing Riven spammed 20 times or Yasou, or Zed, or Lee Sin.
Variety is the spice of life.
