Since its introduction in League of Legends (LoL), the Stopwatch has become a heavily debated topic. With its low cost but high-quality effects, the item has always attracted many players to use it in ranked matches and professional play.
Subsequently, Riot Games had to weaken the Stopwatch through various patches. First, they reduced the impact of the Perfect Timing rune in the Inspiration tree. Specifically, the Stopwatch will appear later than before, contributing fewer gold stats to upgrade the large item.
Over many patches, the cost of this item gradually increased over time. When it first appeared, players only needed 600 gold to own the Stopwatch. By the current patch (12.21), this item costs 750 gold – significantly higher than before. Additionally, Riot Games removed the Stopwatch from the recipe for the Guardian Angel, making it difficult for Tank champions to utilize this component during the completion of their full item.
Finally, Riot Games changed an important factor that reduced the effectiveness of this item. When players own the Guardian Angel or Zhonya’s Hourglass, they will not be able to use the Stopwatch again. In the past, tournaments recorded many situations where the item effect was used twice. They would enter a stasis state for 5 seconds, contributing to turning the tide of the match.
Since the cost was raised to 750 gold, the Stopwatch has garnered less attention from players. In the 2022 World Championship, the number of players using this item decreased significantly. As a result, team fights became more dramatic and exciting, contributing to making the Worlds tournament one of the most engaging ever.
So, what caused the sudden drop in the number of players using the Stopwatch? The answer lies in the gold cost players must spend for one use of the item. If they do not upgrade to a large item, players need to spend 450 gold to gain the stasis effect after selling the Broken Stopwatch. Therefore, the Stopwatch requires finesse from players if they do not want to lose the advantage against their opponents.
Therefore, this item is most effective in team fights, especially when the game is nearing its end. Because of all the reasons above, the Stopwatch has rarely appeared in this year’s tournament. Since its introduction, the item has created many negative experiences for players, leading the League of Legends community to silently thank Riot Games for its nerf. Thus, the reduced popularity of the Stopwatch is one of the factors that made the 2022 World Championship more exciting than previous years.