Wild Rift: Everything We Learned from the Gameplay Reveal
By Josh Tyler
The Wild Rift gameplay reveal shows off new champions.
3. Champion Changes
Because of the dual stick controls and the faster pace of the game (Wild Rift’s map is smaller than regular Summoner’s Rift), Riot has made some adjustments so the champions fit the game’s new controls and style better. While the core aspects of a champion’s kit are untouched and their theme remains, on the Wild Rift champions will have certain additional bonuses to their kit.
For instance, Nasus will get stacks on his Siphoning Strike faster than he would in League of Legends to compensate for the game’s faster pace. Additionally, Twisted Fate’s passive in Wild Rift has been upgraded to grant him additional attack speed and Shyvana gets unique bonuses for each type of Elemental Drake she kills. While Riot stressed that long-time players should feel comfortable jumping onto the Wild Rift with their favorite champion, you may have to re-learn some of the nuances to their kit.
4. Simplified and New Runes
Riot is bringing runes reforged to the Wild Rift, but with a twist. You’ll still be able to pick one keystone rune (we saw some of the current League of Legends runes, but also some removed ones like Kleptomancy) as well as three minor runes to complement that. However, it does not appear that you are locked to having to choose minor runes from the same tree as your keystone, as we saw a Janna running Aery as the keystone with minor runes in the Domination, Resolve, and Sorcery tree.
Some of these minor runes are also unique to Wild Rift. We saw the Sweet Tooth rune previewed, which increases healing from Honeyfruit and grants gold for each fruit you eat. They also described the Loyalty rune, which grants you and your closest ally champion bonus armor and MR.
We also saw previews for runes like Mastermind (grants bonus true damage to turrets and monsters, and bonus gold and XP from takedowns of objectives), Pack Hunter (gain movement speed when near allies and gain bonus gold when you help them takedown an enemy), and Spirit Walker (granting bonus max health and slow resistance). Maybe some of these runes will be coming to Summoner’s Rift down the line!
5. The Wild Rift vs. Summoner’s Rift
Riot revealed that there are a few key differences between the Wild Rift you’ll be playing on mobile and the classic Summoner’s Rift. For one, on the Wild Rift there are no inhibitors or Nexus towers. Once you’ve breached the base, you can run straight for the Nexus and the win, but be careful because the Nexus will fire at you like a turret if you’re all alone attacking it!
Next, the jungle buffs have also been upgraded on the Wild Rift. Red Brambleback grants extra damage when defeated, while Blue Sentinel grants health and mana regen. The two buffs also have “evolved” versions that grant more powerful bonuses in the late game.
On the Wild Rift, we still have the same basic jungle orientation and plants, but with a slight variation. Jungle paths between camps are much wider than before, with much less brush in the jungles. There are honeyfruit plants that spawn in the lanes.