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- League of Legends fans aren’t against attractive champions, but they dislike when attractiveness is the main focus of the design.
- This frustration started with Seraphine and led to complaints about the lack of non-human champions.
- A lot of the complaints are misguided, such as the case with Viego, Gwen, and Bel’Veth being hated.
League fans seem to harbor an intense hatred for Riot releasing conventionally pretty champions. They claim that every other champion is either an e-girl that goes bot or an attractive band member that has no reason lore-wise to look so good.
Sometimes the critique is justified, but I feel like people are just riding on the hate bandwagon ever since Seraphine.
Why Hate Beauty?
It’s not that League of Legends fans have a thing against beauty. If anything, older League designs such as Janna and Miss Fortune were much more blatant with the sex appeal being an important factor.
The problem isn’t attractiveness, it’s attractiveness being a priority. The main culprit was Seraphine, with whom it was obvious they thought of a pretty girl first and designed the rest afterwards. The fans hate to see one-dimensional characters that are only defined by their looks.
Another problem caused indirectly by Seraphine is the focus on humanoid champions. Riot’s been hesitant with their non-human champions, and every human champion turns out pretty.
This makes it so that players that main monster champions and want more designs like them start hating humanoids.
Is The Trend Really That Bad?
If you look at the champions released by year, it’s clear that there was a certain shift in design philosophy. Up until 2018, at least half the champions released every year consisted of either non-human characters or designs that were not conventionally pretty.
Even if the issue became more apparent with Seraphine in 2020, the entire roster of 2019 consisting of Sylas, Aphelios, Senna, and Qiyana (and Yuumi) showed that the shift already happened.
Recent Years
2022 starting off with Zeri wasn’t the best opener, but we saw a significant change in design once more. We saw our first grown adult woman in the game that actually looks like she’s lived a long time.
We got our second champion with South Asian features in Nilah. Lastly, Riot surprised fans by following through on the promise made of a monster champion in 2022 by releasing Bel’Veth. 2023 was even better with Milio and Naafiri, and the trend continues with Smolder.
Does The Ruined King Need A Ruined Shirt?
I hate designs made without passion as much as the next person, but a lot of the hate is uncalled for. Yes, Seraphine was an issue. This doesn’t mean all other champions had no reason to look how they did.
Fans like to point out Viego, saying that the extremely hyped Ruined King being a shirtless boy band member instead of a wise old king was a huge disappointment.
Viego’s entire story arc revolves around him being an obnoxious, amateur prince yearning for a lost love, and I’d say he embodies that perfectly.
Creepy Dolls Can Be Cute
From the Ruination event that Viego came in, Gwen also faced some issues. Fans called her yet another pretty champion. Some said that she should be more creepy, as she’s possessed. Others said that she needed to be more doll-like.
Reddit user Lethion addresses the first part quite effectively, “Yes, she is possessed but she is not possessed by some unearthly eldritch evil demon. She is possessed by a queen who sewed the very same doll with genuine emotions.”
The part about not being doll-like can be understood if you pay closer attention to the lore. Gwen might have her origin in the Blessed Doll, but she’s the Hallowed Seamstress. This post tackles Gwen’s design in greater detail.
Void Mother
I understand that fans were expecting something more monstrous, and seeing a champion like Bel’Veth who has a human face was unexpected. Still, her having a humanoid face fits both her level of authority and sentience compared to other Void spawns, as well as her manipulative nature.
The trend seems to have calmed now. To my surprise, I didn’t see any hate towards Aurora’s design. I hope the community keeps on being more open and gives Riot the chance to make different kinds of champions.
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Heya, I’m Asad (Irre) Kashif! I’ve been writing about anything and everything since as far back as I can remember. Professionally, I started writing five years ago, working both as a ghostwriter and writing under my own name. As a published author and a council member in Orpheus, my journey in the world of writing has been fulfilling and dynamic.
I still cherish the essays I wrote about my favorite PS2 games, and I’m thrilled to have transformed my passion for game journalism into a career. I’m a theory crafter for Genshin Impact (and now Wuthering Waves) and have a deep love for roguelites and roguelikes. While I prefer indie games for their distinct aesthetic and vibes, I do enjoy triple-A games occasionally. I’ve also been playing League since season 6, and I main Akali! I have a keen interest in discovering and playing more obscure games, as well as researching forgotten titles. Additionally, I am a front-end programmer who dabbles a bit in gamedev occasionally.
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