Riot Games have announced their plans to bring a new version of League of Legends to mobile devices and consoles.
This was revealed tonight, alongside other news concerning other gaming projects, including Teamfight Tactics on mobile.
LoL Mobile will be different from the version you find on the PC, with Riot Games coming it will be called League of Legends Wild Rift.
The good news is that this new version will remain free-to-play like the original League of Legends.
It’s described as a redesigned 5v5 League of Legends MOBA that has been designed specifically for new platforms.
The bad news being that fans will have to wait to play the first League of Legends Mobile betas.
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS MOBILE RELEASE DATE
While Riot Games haven’t provided a full launch schedule, they have provided a rough guide.
League of Legends Wild Rift is to launch on mobile devices and consoles in 2020.
This will be the full version of the game, while plans are also in place to host LoL Mobile betas.
But Riot Games has also been honest with how they are putting together this new game, which is no mere PC port.
The dev team has revealed that League of Legends Wild Rift will be released in 2020 on Android and iOS.
Console versions will follow and it sounds like they won’t be arriving until 2021, so perhaps a new game for the PS5 and Xbox Scarlett.
“We’re going to begin the process of rolling alphas and betas through the end of the year, starting in China,” a message from Riot explains.
“The plan is to have the mobile version fully live everywhere in the world by the end of 2020, with console coming sometime after.
“We rebuilt the game from scratch (like… the whole thing). Refreshed models, animations, game systems and more—but keeping true to the core League of Legends gameplay you already know.
“We didn’t want to just port League on PC 1:1—we want to make sure Wild Rift feels like it was designed for new platforms, and use that opportunity to make a bunch of improvements to the game.
“While you won’t get your unlocks from League PC, you’ll get some cool rewards for the time you’ve spent in the PC version.”
So it sounds like League of Legends Wild Rift will probably not be open to most fans in the US and UK this year.
Gamers can pre-register on the Android and iOS app stores to make sure they’re the first to gain access.
But as mentioned above, the first LoL Mobile beta tests will be held in China.
Riot Games has also warned that Wild Rift and the original League of Legends experience will not be cross-platform compatible.
“The games differ in a few ways, but both include the core 5v5 MOBA gameplay you expect from League of Legends.
“Adding cross-platform between League PC and Wild Rift would require compromises of competitive integrity, and we want to make sure the gameplay feels fair and fun no matter which platform you’re most comfortable on.
“During certain big moments throughout the year, we’ll try to coordinate event themes and releases between League PC and Wild Rift, and we’re exploring the possibility of cross-platform play between mobile and console, but nothing locked in yet.”