Since its release, League of Legends has built a bit of a poor reputation among players. This reputation comes from hundreds of thousands of games lost thanks to griefing, players intentionally feeding their opponents, and other toxic behaviors. Developer Riot Games is taking a more proactive approach to tackling poor behaviors and preventing them from happening in future games.
Couple of things we promised coming out across the next few patches. https://t.co/1nn61r2zmG
— Cody Germain (@coderbryant) July 11, 2020
In an update from League of Legends, product lead Cody “Riot Codebear” Germain detailed several systems being implemented to deter two main scenarios: “intent to lose actions and leaving or going idle in game.” Actions that are considered to have an intent to lose include feeding opponents, griefing, intentionally leaving the game, going idle, and disconnecting from a match. Riot Games’ goal with these systems is to not only reduce the frequency of these actions but also minimize their impact on a game.
One of the main behaviors Riot is looking to curb is intentional feeding and players going idle. After watching hundreds of VOD reports from players, Germain and the Riot team have a good idea as to how these behaviors affect a game. Over the next few patches, Riot Games is rolling out a new detection system that can identify these actions at twice the rate they were doing so before.
Now that Riot can identify more players intentionally feeding or going idle, they can take action against those players and reprimand them for ruining the game for their teammates. Riot Games will also now notify players who are affected by another player’s behavior. Some of these improvements are already in-game, having launched in the 10.15 patch. As more patches are rolled out, these systems will be improved and expanded.
What can Riot do to stop players from ruining games?
Riot Games is still exploring options to prevent toxic behaviors from ruining games, with a focus on preventing and deterring these behaviors in the first place. These actions are good in the short term and may change as more effective methods are developed. To reduce the impact on a game, Riot could offer early surrender options in a game. Currently, the remaining players would have to wait the full 20 minutes to quit playing a match without penalty. Players could then join another game where everyone (hopefully) wants to play a full match.
Other methods Riot has been looking into to help players are LP loss mitigation on matches where a teammate goes AFK or appears to intentionally try to lose. Players who tend to leave matches early could also face stricter queue lockouts after disconnecting or be subject to pre-queue warnings next time they go to play a game. Riot Games did not detail what a stricter lockout or warning could look like for players. Riot also does not have a time-frame on when to expect these changes, but they will be looking for player feedback on whatever methods they choose.
While some of the methods Riot details are still a ways off, it is good to see the gaming giant work to improve their flagship game. Whichever direction Riot chooses to take improves the League of Legends experience for everyone. For more League of Legends news, updates, and more follow Daily Esports and don’t forget to check out our forums.
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