Even if champions are more
powerful than regular followers,
they’re far from some kind of
game-winning trump card. Knowing
when to play them and how to keep
them alive is key, and it’s especially
rewarding when you pull it off
because you know your opponent is
doing everything they can to kill
them. With them in play, Runeterra
feels like a true battle of wits, each
player trying to outsmart the other.
It’s satisfying as hell to trick an
enemy into a position that levels up
your champion or destroys theirs.
They also add welcome flavour to
well-understood deck types. A
control deck loaded with spells that
stun and force cards back into your
opponent’s hand becomes far more
sinister when paired with Yasuo, who
deals damage to stunned or recalled
units. If you pull that trick off six
times and level him up, he’ll start
killing stunned units outright.
Even if you’re not a big fan of
League of Legends, its charming cast
of anarchist nutjobs, stoic samurai,
and horrifying spectres bring so
much life and humour to each battle.
I love hearing Jinx laughing
maniacally when I use one of her
related spells to destroy an enemy
unit, or seeing my adorable Lonely
Poros transform when I summon
another Poro unit. The card art is
often so pretty that I frequently sneak
a peek using the inspect button
during my opponent’s turn.
But as nice as the art is, the layout
of the main menu and deck builder
could use a lot of work. Information
is often poorly laid out, forcing me to
navigate to menus just to get
information I need when trying to
build a deck. It’s beyond annoying
that I have to go to the store window
just to see what crafting resources I
have, or that there are no better
options for sorting and organising my
collection of cards.
PACK IT IN
Though its combat is a
lot of fun, where
Legends of Runeterra
sets a new standard is
in its economy and
rewards. Booster packs
are gone entirely –
good fuckin’ riddance – and replaced
with a layering of weekly chests and
several free battle passes that
constantly dole out crafting materials,
cards, and Wildcards, which can be
redeemed for any card with a
corresponding rarity.
Being able to pick
which cards I want to
add to my collection is
refreshing. Though
rarer Wildcards come
infrequently, I’ve
already built a few
decks that feel
powerful and highly competitive
instead of just cobbling together
whatever I can.
Earning the maximum amount of
possible rewards each week isn’t a
brutal grind either. Playing a fewhours every day, completing quests
and draft modes puts me close to
capping my rewards, but I could
easily play much less and still reap
some rewards. Hardcore players
might lament running out of things to
do if they invest too much time, but
I’m happy that a competitive game
from a major publisher, for once, isn’t
trying to take over my life.
Since launch, I’ve played in
ranked mode almost exclusively.
Though I’ve lost more than I care to
admit, I’m motivated to keep playing
because fights almost always feel fair.
It’s one of the less obvious benefits of
not being overtly pay-to-win like
pretty much any other card game.
You can still buy Wildcards, but
there’s a weekly cap on them, so even
hardcore spenders won’t outpace us
filthy casuals.
It’s fantastic. Duels feel like a true
test of strategy (and a little luck)
instead of who is playing the most
expensive meta deck.
Even Legends of Runeterra’s draft
mode, called Expeditions, is
pleasingly generous. Like most draft
modes, in order to play you have to
spend either a few dollars, spend a
draft token you earn from various
tasks, or surrender a large sum of
crafting resources. But in Runeterra
you can play twice per entry, building
a new deck each time and then using
whichever run was more successful
to determine your final rewards.
Even if you do terribly, you’ll still
receive a champion card equal to the
value of your admission, but winning
all of the seven games showered me
with several very rare cards and so
many crafting resources that I was
immediately able to go back in again
for another run.
It’s exciting to play a card game
with so few barriers and so little
segregation between its players. And
because I don’t feel like a filthy,
second-class casual for not buying
cards, Legends of Runeterra has
quickly wormed its way into my daily
routine. Though its deck-building
menus could use a lot of work, this is
a welcome alternative in a genre
where how competitive you are is
often related directly to how much
moneyyouspend.85
Several clever
innovations and a
generous economy make
Legends of Runeterra
easy to love.VERDICTI’ve already
built decks that
feel powerful
and highly
competitiveFINAL FORM
Champions become much
stronger upon levelling up.
Here’s a few examplesThis tricky champion automatically wins
the game for you if you can kill enough
enemies with her. The key is keeping her
alivelongenoughtodoit.FIORA
NORMAL LEVELLED-UPNice and simple: you cast spells, he gives
you mech minions. Cast enough spells
and he levels up, making all his
mechsstronger.HEIMERDINGER
NORMAL LEVELLED-UPKill this champion, and he comes back
angier. His newly beefed up stats and
abilities allow you to rush down your
opponent’sNexus.TRYNDAMERE
NORMAL LEVELLED-UPDamages any enemy you stun. Do it
enough and he levels up, attacking all
stunned enemies with his Quick Attack
before they can retaliate.YASUO
NORMAL LEVELLED-UPLegends of Runeterra
REVIEW