As the 2023 League of Legends World Championship hit its peak, Riot Games unveiled its plans for the 2024 season and gave fans their first look at the game’s next champion, Hwei.
Everyone at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul looked at the maxi screens with awe while the masterful painter showcased 10 different abilities. But as the mesmerizing introductory clip came to its end it dawned on League players: Hwei indeed has 10 abilities.
“We’re under no pretenses this champion’s going to be easy to play,” Matthew Leung-Harrison, the lead designer for League gameplay, told Dot Esports. Among the myriad of tasks he’s responsible for, Leung-Harrison and his team are in charge of balance and gameplay updates. He believes Hwei might sit on lower win rates for a few weeks after his release, but only because it would take “some time to get better at him”—understandably so.
The lead designer described the upcoming mid laner mage as “reasonable,” though. While it’s true his abilities’ kit might scare newcomers to League due to its sheer complexity, seasoned players will easily recognize Hwei’s spells in other champions’ kits. This sits well with Riot, which designed the champion specifically with high-ranked players in mind and is “okay” if Hwei has a “very steep mastery curve.”
While Hwei will represent a challenge for even the most seasoned League players to master, Leung-Harrison doesn’t perceive the champion as “disproportionately difficult” to balance. “[Hwei’s kit] it’s not something that we haven’t seen before,” continued the lead designer saying that his team has already “baked” some counter plays into Hwei’s abilities to implement in case he becomes too effective in higher levels of play.
As the 2024 season unfolds, Hwei’s debut is ready to redefine the dynamics of high-level play, offering a unique blend of damage, utility, and crowd control to players. Whether weaving spells for devastating damage, protective measures, or disruptive crowd control plays, players will find themselves wielding a versatile champion, capable of adapting to diverse in-game scenarios and painting the perfect picture of their desired game outcome.
Disclaimer: Riot PR paid for travel to Seoul and provided accommodation.
