If you’ve been with League of Legends (especially in ranked mode) for a long time, the term “loser queue” is likely familiar to many players. This concept refers to the idea that when players win several games in a row, Riot Games’ system will match them with worse players, increasing their chances of losing. This has become so common that many gamers believe that “loser queue” exists in League of Legends.
However, the Lead Gameplay Designer of League of Legends recently revealed that “loser queue” does not exist in this game. Riot confirmed that they do not intentionally match players with bad teammates to make the game harder. Furthermore, the Riot leader suggested that 99.9% of the community is wrong in thinking that “winning is due to me, losing is because of the team.”
“I assure you that ‘loser queue’ does not exist in League of Legends. We do not want people to lose by matching them with bad players. For 99.9% of players, even if you think you have ‘played perfectly’ and have a good KDA while your teammates are ‘throwing the game,’ you are mistaken. I promise you that if a skilled player evaluates that match, there are hundreds of things you could have done better to change the outcome of the game,” Riot Phroxzon shared.
Not stopping there, the “big boss” of Riot Games revealed that playing to protect one’s KDA is a very wrong action. One effective way to climb the ranks that Riot Phroxzon shared is to play for your own win conditions and prevent those of the opponents. This helps gamers rank up significantly and increases their understanding of League of Legends.
A prime example of this climbing method is the gameplay of streamer TheBausffs on the Western European server. This player is famous for his Sion “feed to win” style, prioritizing win conditions such as farming minions and pushing towers over KDA. TheBausffs even climbed to Challenger in Korea with this mindset, impressing many viewers and players alike.
Through Riot Phroxzon’s insights, players learn that there are no unfavorable factors from the League of Legends system affecting ranked matches. Therefore, players find it difficult to pinpoint reasons to blame for their failures, as climbing the ranks now entirely depends on the player’s skill.