League of Legends removed the option to earn skins for free. Many players are not pleased with this. But now Riot is justifying itself for the controversial change: Players simply do not spend enough money in a game that relies on Free2Play.
What kind of change is this?
- Riot introduced Hex Chests in LoL in 2016: Inside, there are shards for champions or free skins. Keys for the chests could also be earned for free.
- In early 2025, Riot announced: The Hex Chests will no longer be available for free in the future, but only exclusively in the shop for real money. This means there will no longer be an option to earn free skins just by skill.
- Loyal fans are loudly complaining about the change: Some even believe this is the worst decision in the history of the game.
In a statement, the team defended its decision but promised a series of changes to improve the Battle Passes in the future.
Riot explains that the removal of free Hextech Chests was necessary
What did the developers say? The Riot team has now commented on the changes in the Battle Pass. The English-speaking magazine Insider-gaming.com reports: In their update, the developers admitted that the free Hextech Chests had become the “main method” for players to unlock skins, leading to a decline in skin purchases.
However, as a Free2Play game, it relies on shop revenue and thus on players purchasing skins in the shop. But the developers emphasize that it is not about increasing profits, but rather about long-term sustainability.
What do they want to improve? The developers know that many are quite angry about the changes and stated that they want to improve the Battle Pass:
- Future skins in the Battle Pass will have “more pronounced visual effects”
- Unlocking a Battle Pass skin will also unlock the champion it is intended for if the player does not already own it.
- Quests in the Battle Pass that require players to play with purchased skins will also be completely removed.
- Some of the more difficult Battle Pass missions will also be removed or revised.
- The Battle Pass XP from Teamfight Tactics will also be removed.
With these changes, they aim to take the wind out of the sails of loud critics. However, whether this will succeed is questionable. Because anger in the community is currently high. Some explain that this was one of the worst decisions ever (via reddit.com). Some even state that they only played LoL because they could also get content for free. But that is now over.
Whether these changes will really help to win players back or at least satisfy loyal fans is another question. Because even now, many players fear that Riot will not only implement such changes in League of Legends but might also plan them for the mysterious LoL MMORPG: League of Legends fans criticize Riot for its greed and are concerned about the LoL MMORPG
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