Australian gamers are jealously looking in on other regions that got early beta access to League of Legends: Wild Rift will be able to join in on the fun from 7 December.
The beta of the latest version of one of the most popular games ever created, League of Legends by Riot Games which has only got more prominent in the eSports boom of 2020, has been available in some regions, such as South East Asia, for a little while already. This was to iron out bugs and ensure the game was fit for purpose before release to a broader audience.
However, this only served to create jealousy among gamers in different regions, especially Australia, because of their proximity to South East Asia. Fortunately, the wait is almost over with the imminent release in Oceania. It is also due for a broader release in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the CIS region on 10 December. So, soon, almost everyone will be able to enjoy the game.
The Mass Appeal of LoL
Since it was released in 2009, League of Legends, can easily be considered one of the most popular and successful games ever created. According to statistics listed on Leaguefeed.net, the overall player base for LoL sits at around 115 million players worldwide. Of this, it usually boasts a daily player peak of approximately 50 million players, and annual revenue is reported to be just short of $1.5 billion.
This has been the result of consistent growth over the years, except between 2017 and 2018 when it experienced its one and only drop in player numbers. To put this into perspective, it’s main competitor, Dota 2, usually boasts a peak daily player count of around a million people.
As a result, viewership numbers for major international events are astronomical. The 2019 League of Legends World Championship had over 100 million unique viewers with a peak of 44 million concurrent viewers. This makes the game one of the most popular eSports listed on the best betting apps for the Australian market, such as PlayUp.
League of Legends: Wild Rift Details
Similar to the original version of the game, League of Legends: Wild Rift is an online multiplayer battle arena game published by Riot Games. The major difference is Wild Rift is made for Android, iOS, and some unspecified consoles, which conventional wisdom suggests will include the Nintendo Switch.
The gameplay will resemble the original in that the player will still have a three-dimensional isometric perspective of the battlefield and the objective of the game is yet to destroy all of the opposition buildings by pushing down three lanes. It has been streamlined significantly to be suitable for mobile phones, including a reduced champion pool to choose from and games will take between 15-20 minutes to complete rather than an hour.
The development of the game has been less than ideal after Riot initially rejected Tencent’s plan to remake League of Legends as a mobile title, claiming it was not possible. However, Tencent created their own widely-successful battle arena mobile game called Honor of Kings, which more or less forced Riots’ hand.
Where Does Wild Rift Fit In?
With all that popularity behind the game, it might seem a bit redundant to make another version of it to become your own biggest competition potentially. However, a typical game of League of Legends on PC can take as much as an hour to complete if the two teams are even, not to mention the fact players would have to be at home or at a gaming parlour to play.
Wild Rift is a short and fun way people can engage with the game they love while out and about in the city, on public transport, or even just waiting for an appointment. It will also serve as a fantastic recruiting tool, as those who enjoy in on mobile could well look for the complete experience on PC.
