As far as video game adaptations go, theLeague of LegendsTV showArcaneis a real oddity. As a general rule, video game fans are skeptical of movies and TV shows based on games, since most fail to represent the source material in ways that are both faithful and compelling. Nevertheless,Arcanehas received acclaim for its accuracy toLeague of Legendslore and its strength as a standalone show. Jinx and Vi’s complicated family dynamics, alongside Jayce and Caitlyn’s struggles to navigate the politics and social rules of Piltover, make up a solid story and a surprisingly well-liked retelling of a game.
Shortly afterArcane’s third batch of episodes released, Netflix andLeague of Legendsdeveloper Riot Games confirmed thata second season ofArcaneis already in the works. That’s great, butArcaneshouldn’t be the beginning and end ofLeague of Legendsstorytelling. On the contrary, fans of the MOBA have been asking Riot for more in-game story events for quite some time. Some ofLoL’s most memorable moments in history come from dramatic story beats, and it’d be great to see more of those happen.Arcaneshould be the catalyst for more storytelling withinLeague of Legends,rather than the sole medium for exploring the world of Runeterra.
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Improving League of Legends Events After Arcane
Arcanecouldn’t have released at a better time forLeague of Legendsfans. In 2021, the game’s central story arc was aboutViego the Ruined King’s descent on Runeterraas part of the apocalyptic Ruination. Viego’s rise as aLeague of Legendsantagonist and the new prominence of well-liked characters like Lucian and Senna looked great on paper, but unfortunately, the Ruination visual novel withinLeague of Legendsdidn’t deliver. Many players criticized the Ruination story event’s writing as overly simplistic and implausible, meaning the story event was largely a bust. By releasing after the Ruination event,Arcanehas renewed hope that Riot can skillfully weave its lore into strong stories starringLeague of Legendschampions.
to fully redeem itself, however, Riot Games will need to start crafting new in-game events in the same spirit asArcane,if not through the same medium. There’s a couple clear writing notes thatLeague of Legendscan take fromArcaneto make future story events work well.Arcanefocuses on characters who were already connected throughLeague of Legendslore, which is very different from the Ruination’s attempt to quickly assemble relationships between a huge cast of characters. Additionally, althoughArcane’s cast is bound to expandin its second season, it has a fairly small central cast of characters.League of Legendsevents that use small groups of characters with known ties to each other will have much more power to create nuanced relationships and rich interactions like those ofArcane.
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League of Legends Needs Strong Events
Telling more stories withinLeague of Legendsisn’t just a good idea in a vacuum; it’s practical because of the state ofArcane.Hype for the show’s second season is strong right now, but Riot Games has confirmed that the season won’t release until at least 2023. While Riot can certainly plan another extravaganza in the style of RiotX Arcane to promote the show later, it should also preserve the community’sheightened interest inLeague of Legendsloreuntil the season is ready. The best way to do that is to run new, stronger story events withinLeague of Legendsitself.
It’s wonderful thatArcanehas been met with such rave reviews from fans and critics alike. It would’ve been a shame to see a poor representation of so manyfan favoriteLeague of Legendschampionsin the game’s first real TV show. Now thatArcanehas set a high bar forLeague of Legendsstories, though, the game itself has to meet that expectation, too. It won’t be easy to produce events of the same caliber, but if it draws players intoLeague of Legendsand supports future ofArcane-styleLoLprojects, then it’ll be worth it.
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