When we think of games that are ‘Free to Play’ these days, we still have this preconception within ourselves that the game will either be very one-dimensional like Angry Birds, or just sub-par or quite frankly rubbish. However, this pre conception should have fizzed away, with games like Guild Wars having graced our world in years past. League of Legends is another game bringing forward RPG based combat on an MMORTS scale, winning 4 major video game awards over the past 3 years.

Developed by Riot Games in California, League of Legends is aimed at audiences who have enjoyed team-based person vs. person combat in RTS games, as well as those who have enjoyed skill-set based PVP combat in an MMORPG. The game however, is by no means limited to those audiences and through playing and introducing friends; I have found that it’s a game very easy to pick up by anyone, so long as they possess the basic fundamentals and understanding of online gaming.

Unlike other games, where you would normally create your own ‘character’, in League Of Legends that is not the case. You play as a Champion, of which there are currently 91 to choose from. Champions have different roles within the game and often your team of 5 will be made up of the following:

  • A Support Champion (Offers Healing/Crowd Control/Sight)
  • A Ranged DPS (Offers Ranged Damage Per Second and assassination of singular targets)
  • A DPS Mage (Offers Ranged Area Of Influence Damage)
  • A Tank (Offers High Armour + Magic Resist and is able to soak up damage from opponents while the DPS characters take out the targets)
  • A Melee Bruiser (Like a Tank, this character can soak up damage to a certain extent but is also able to offer low-medium damage)

Every week there are 10 different champions that are available free to play. However, champions can also be purchased from the Riot Store. Inside the store there are two different types of currency which they accept, Influence Points (IP) and Riot Points (RP). IP is gained through playing games on the various different platforms League of Legends offers, with a win granting you more IP than a loss would. IP can be used to purchase many different things including Champions, Runes and Rune Pages. RP is a currency that is paid for via PayPal or Debit card and although it costs you your well-earned money, it does have its positives. RP Can be used to purchase Champions, Champion Skins (which are different ‘outfits’ and designs for your champion) as well as IP Boosts which allow you to gain boosted IP over the period of 24 hours or 4 wins, whichever suits your needs.

League of Legends has indisputable positives and has been completely ground breaking in terms of online team gaming. The community is so vast that you can receive support via the forums in minutes regarding any issue you may be having. The support for the game, through Riot Games, although slow and inefficient in terms of replying to issues one player is having, is on the whole great where it concerns the stability of the game.  Unlike other online games I have played, I found and continue to find that League Of Legends contains little to no obvious bugs, provides a fun and exciting way of gaming and I believe is accessible to anyone who possesses the aforementioned skills or even the will to learn.

Visit http://euw.leagueoflegends.com/ to register and download the game client. Give it a go, it might just become your favourite game.