The creators of League of Legends (LoL) asked fans if they want an MMO. This sparked the imagination of many, picturing a new MMORPG in the League of Legends universe. But now comes the cold shower: it was more a thought experiment than a teaser.
Tweet sparks hype: One of the founders of Riot Games, Marc “Tryndamere” Merrill, started a discussion. He asked in a tweet: “Should we build an MMO? Yes or No?“
The question ignited hype amongthe starving MMO fans and excited LoL players. The tweet received 33.6k Likes and over 10,000 comments in just a few days.
It is clear: Many are wishing for a new MMO from Riot Games.
There’s something behind it
Tweet understood as “We are already working on it”: Some interpreted the tweet as a clear teaser. It created the impression among some that Riot had been secretly working on an MMO for years. They thought that was where all the money LoL players regularly poured into new champions and skins had gone.
These hopeful players understood the tweet as a preamble for the PR campaign to introduce a new LoL MMO.
Riot backtracks
Hopes receive a dampener: But now Riot clarifies that the tweet was more of a thought experiment.
Justin Kranzler, the US PR head of Riot Games, says Variety:
“He [Marc Merrill] was just playful around the release of our new World Map. He wanted to get players thinking about what a long-term goal of Riot Games could be.”
Probably nothing planned: This sounds rather sober. Apparently, Riot Games does not have an MMO in the pipeline after all. They now seem somewhat surprised at what the tweet from Merrill triggered in terms of hype.
LoL gets lore on track: In principle, the tweet was probably meant more as a triumph for Riot. In recent months and years, Riot has finally patched together the complex and fragmented backstory of League of Legends enough to present a World Map (via Riot).
A functioning lore could even serve as a basis for an MMO. There’s no need to hide anymore. That was probably the intent of the tweet.
Maybe the discussion will yield something after all?
What does this mean? As a long-term goal, Riot may have such a LoL MMO in mind. But no one should expect an announcement anytime soon. However, perhaps Marc Merrill’s tweet was a kind of test. They dipped their toe in the water to see what the temperature was.
The answer has been received: The interest in a LoL MMO is undeniably there.
