Riot Games is finally taking its popular MOBA to mobile devices and consoles with League of Legends: Wild Rift, which is set to launch in 2020.
Rumors of a mobile version for League of Legends surfaced in May, as Riot Games was said to have entered a partnership with Tencent to bring the MOBA to iOS and Android. The project has finally come to fruition.
The five-on-five gameplay of League of Legends for the PC was rebuilt specifically for iOS, Android, and consoles, with a new map named Wild Rift based on Summoner’s Rift, streamlined for faster matches of 15 minutes to 20 minutes. The game will feature a dual-stick control scheme, refreshed models and animations, and the ability to jump into matches in seconds.
Riot Games will launch League of Legends: Wild Rift as a free-to-play game, similar to its PC version. All the champions may be earned through gameplay, with the option to purchase champions and cosmetics. The game will roll out with about 40 champions based on their PC counterparts, with some tweaks to be more friendly with the new controls.
League of Legends: Wild Rift will not go cross-platform with the MOBA on PC, to keep gameplay fair. Riot Games said that it will try to coordinate event themes and releases between the two versions though and that it will look into cross-platform play between mobile devices and consoles.
Riot Games has not locked down the minimum specifications for the mobile version, but it is aiming for the equivalent of the Samsung Galaxy A7 for Android with 1 GB RAM, Qualcomm Snapdragon 410, and Adreno 306 GPU. For iOS, the target is iPhone 5S and later.
Limited alpha tests and beta tests will soon run in select countries, with Riot Games aiming to launch the full mobile version in most regions by the end of 2020 and a console release to come sometime afterward. The developer has not specified the specific consoles on which the title will be available, though it promises to reveal more information in 2020.
The announcement of League of Legends: Wild Rift is part of Riot Games’ 10-year anniversary celebration for the popular MOBA. The festivities included a teaser for a character-based shooter codenamed Project A, which appears to be a cross between Overwatch and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
