One of the champions gaining significant attention lately is Hwei – a new champion with a diverse skill set, often referred to as the “Invoker of League of Legends”. Notably, Hwei also has many special interactions with Jhin – one of the most perfectly designed Marksmen by Riot. Both of these champions are artistic, but Hwei appears more composed compared to the “Reaper of Artists”. Especially, on the occasion of Hwei’s debut, Riot has also introduced many missions pitting champions against each other for players to enjoy.
Notably, after debuting, Hwei will also receive a new Winter Wonder skin soon. However, this skin, which is considered quite beautiful and designed specifically for the upcoming Christmas festival, is now regarded as having ‘pay to win’ elements. Specifically, when using the skin, some of Hwei’s skills will have their visuals altered to fit the skin’s theme. Consequently, Hwei’s skills become even harder to recognize.
Accordingly, Hwei’s skill Flame Devastation (QQ) bears an astonishing resemblance to the ability Dreadful Countenance (EQ) of the same champion. The animations differ only slightly, and if players are not prepared, it will be very difficult to distinguish them. Meanwhile, with the default skin, Hwei’s skills are much easier to identify as each skill set has distinctly different shapes.
Hwei’s two skills in the new skin are visually similar
The situation has caused great confusion among players after being posted. On Reddit, one user commented: “It’s really hard to understand why Hwei’s skills in the Winter Wonder skin are almost identical. Meanwhile, the default skin has clearly different skills. I get that it’s due to the theme of the skin line, but it makes it difficult for players to identify the differences between skills.”
Currently, Riot has not yet commented on this issue. In League of Legends, there are still quite a few ‘pay to win’ skins like Varus’ Glorious or Vayne’s Battlecast. Many players are concerned that this time, Riot might also choose to ‘look the other way’ and let the situation settle down on its own, as has happened in previous cases.