Suspicions Arise That Riot Wants to “Squeeze Dry” League of Legends
Historically, one of the key factors that has attracted a large player base to League of Legends is the “Free to Play” model. Simply put: players do not need to spend money to fully experience the game. Of course, League of Legends also has other ways to generate revenue, and players can completely choose whether to “pay up” for Riot or not.
However, with the recent mechanisms, specifically Riot’s policy starting in 2025, League of Legends may lose its most vital mechanism to attract players – Free to Play. Accordingly, the Blue Essence mechanism will no longer be easily obtained through matches but will rely on the Battle Pass. Some players have calculated: if gamers reach level 50, they will need to play approximately 882 hours to unlock additional champions.
For new players (who cannot receive all 170 champions for free like older accounts), this will negatively impact their experience. On average, in a quarter (3 months), they receive about 4,600 Blue Essence – a number insufficient to own any new champions. Additionally, skin shards are nearly useless if they are for champions that players do not own.
The League of Legends Community is Also “Speechless” with Riot
Not only in the VCS, but the global League of Legends community has also expressed frustration with Riot’s new policies. Clearly, these factors make it very difficult to attract new players. New gamers who are just getting familiar with League of Legends nearly only have one option left: to spend money to fully experience all the champions in the game – which was previously a “Free to Play” aspect.
Furthermore, there is a profound sense of disappointment. Previously, Riot announced a significant change in 2025, and the community thought positively about it. However, now everything seems to be going completely in the opposite direction, so the sense of letdown is inevitable.