Although League of Legends Preseason 2021 is months away, developer Riot Games has already begun discussing its future plans. Thus, we now know that Riot is working “on a fully upgraded shop interface and a top to bottom rework of the item system” for League’s next pre-season.
As far as League of Legends’ item system goes, Lead Gameplay Designer Mark Yetter said that while snowball and power curves are in a good spot at the moment, some items have benefits that are difficult to notice or are outright hard to use. Where tanks have plenty of options when it comes to reactive item builds, other classes, like mages, are in for a rather linear experience.
Although the way in which League of Legends’ items augment certain playstyles – like marksman or enchanter – could also benefit from changes, Yetter singled out the game’s item system not being intuitive enough as its biggest flaw. “A lot of prospective players who might love League are scared away by the impenetrable item system in their first few games. We believe learning the item system over time is a key part of growing as a League player, but an unintuitive system can be a roadblock to believing it’s possible to achieve that growth.”, he wrote in the post covering the Preseason 2021 plans.
League of Legends Preseason 2021 Plans Target Shop and Item System
Yetter also outlined the goals for League of Legends’ Preseason 2021’s item changes:
- Item purchasing is quick and intuitive.
- Every champion can make strategic decisions through item choices in every game.
- Item builds enable exciting ways to master your champion.
- Items feel epically powerful and enhance your champion’s fantasy.
- Iconic items are retained and you don’t have to relearn everything from scratch.
But what about League of Legends’ shop? When it comes to recommended items, the developer wants to “directly integrate [its] data to have always up-to-date recommendations based on highly skilled player choices”. The recommended choices also need to be more focused, only showcasing items useful at that particular point in the match. That being said, players should still have options to pick from while new systems will “analyze the allies and enemies in each game”, in an effort to help new players identify counters or synergies.
When discussing the all items tab, Riot wants them to fit in one screen and be found in a single position, to help with building muscle memory. Riot also plans to use its “new data capabilities” to highlight viable items, making them easier to find and quicker to buy. More details about the item system, shop and other changes coming to League of Legends in Preseason 2021 will be shared in the coming months.
While Preseason 2021 is quite far at the moment, League of Legends’ latest patch is live on the PBE. Here’s what Patch 10.13 has in store for players.
