happysister
10-18-2011, 01:52 AM
the fact that it took me like a month after i started playing this game to write a review should be a hint at how much i enjoy it. i am going to share with you all just what has ruined my life. really, i've been wanting to write a review on this game for like 3 weeks now, but i kept failing to pull myself away from the game. so while my will power has the upper hand at the moment, allow me to tell you all why you should download this free-to-play game so that it may consume your soul.
before i started playing League of Legends, i didn't know too much about the game. i've heard of it, yes, but i didn't know what it was. a friend of mine who had just started playing the game himself told me that it was something like "a mix between RTS and MMO." which it pretty much is. it's a real time strategy game with MMORPG team play, if that makes any sense. now, before some of you start groaning, "eww, i don't like MMOs," let me make one thing clear. it is NOT an MMO. it has MMO elements in it, but it is not one. we'll get more into that later.
actually, no. let's get into it now. i'm going to try to explain how the classic mode is played without being too confusing. how the game works, is that you have two teams of 5 summoners (aka players). at the start of a match, they are both placed on a large map at two separate ends which hold each of their bases. the map has three lanes (referred to as top, mid, and bot) with jungle area in between the lanes. the lanes stretch between both bases, allowing each team a clear path to travel. clear, yes, but not that safe, for each team has turrets that are set up on their respective "sides" of each lane that will target and fire on those of the opposing team. now, when the match starts, each team has minions that constantly spawn at intervals and march out from their bases. the minions are there to do the brunt work. now finally, we get to the object of the game, which is to be the first team to break into the opposing team's base and destroy their nexus. doing so wins you the game. on the way, you'll need to destroy the enemy turrets to make your path to their base less dangerous, as well as kill off the opposing players as they get in the way.
sounds simple, yes? it is, actually. it's simple, but it's not always easy. here is a short list on other gameplay aspects that you need to consider while trying to take down the other team.
each summoner's champion (the character they play as) starts out as level 1 at the beginning of each and every match. the max level per match is 18. you gain experience to level up by killing minions, killing enemy champions, and killing monster mobs that can be found in the jungle. i'm sure those of you who have played RPGs with a leveling system before know the importance of having higher levels than your opponent.
each summoner's champion starts out nakey but can buy gear during the match to boost their stats and whatnot. you need money to do that though. you accumulate money slowly but constantly during the match, and can gain extra money by last-hitting minions, killing enemy champions, and killing jungle monsters.
there is a CRAP LOAD of gear you can buy which means a crap load of different builds, as well as a lot of flexibility. (ie. if you are facing a team that uses mostly Attack Power, or magic, you can stack on items that boost your resistance to make their hits have less of an effect on you).
speaking of killing jungle monsters, there are a couple monsters in the jungle that do nice things to you and/or your team if you manage to slay them, like giving you neutral buffs or scoring you a ton of money. just be careful when traversing the jungle. it can be easy for people to sneak up on you in there.
one bad player can spell doom for the entire team. if you have someone who is constantly dying against other enemy champions, feeding them exp and money, that can hamper your team's progress as you now have to face an over leveled opponent who more than likely has far more better gear than you. not to mention, you have a teammate who is severely under leveled and prolly has little to no gear at all. and seeing how this game is extremely team-based...you're prolly screwed. not saying you can't make a comeback, but it would be very difficult. AFKers are also not cool if they are on your team.
did i mention that there are currently 84 different champions you can pick from? and a new one on the way. the developers do a very good job at cranking out new champions at a steady pace. each champion has their own strengths and weaknesses, as well as their own unique skill sets. so there is a TON of variety as far as play styles and teaming up goes.
matches usually last from about 30-45 mins. sometimes longer. maybe 20 mins if you're playing against beginner bots/a horrible team. so...don't feel the need to rush. as stated before, this is a real time STRATEGY game. rushing usually does more harm than good, especially at the beginning of a match, when everyone is lvl 1 and nakey.
so as you can see, yes, the game is simple, but it's all those tiny details that can make playing the game rather technical. because of this, it is advised that all new players play through the tutorial. like srs. the tutorial tell you everything you need to know about the gameplay, not to mention you'll prevent yourself from looking like a complete idiot when you start playing with other people. which would be your first match outside the tutorial. unless you do a custom match where it was just you and bots. still though, play the tutorial.
let's see...what else can i tell you that's somewhat important? i told you there were 84 different champions, right? well, it should be obvious that all 84 champs are not free for you to play right away. as you play matches, you earn an in game currency called IP. if you accumulate enough IP, you can then unlock new champions to use (of course, you could also pay real money to purchase cash shop currency and unlock them as well, but you don't have to). now some champions are cheaper than others, but that in no way means that the cheap champions are the sucky ones. some of the cheap champions are frickin' annoying and hard to play against if played right, so do not make the mistake of turning your nose up at them. i hate you Annie...so very, very much.
so you are probably thinking, "unlocking new champions is alright, but what if i want to try them before i buy them? i don't wanna waste IP on a champion i end up never using." well, Riot has this nice thing going on where every week, they rotate 10 free champions for people to try out and use as much as they want. so if you are interested in a particular champion, but are not sure if you should buy them or not, just wait for them to show up on the free rotation. i like this because this allows you to eventually try out all the champions for free, plus you aren't stuck using the same champions all the time even if you do manage to buy one that you don't like. and who knows. maybe you'll find a new one you play well with.
there are other things about League of Legends that i could tell you about, like summoner levels and spells, runes to further enhance your champions, and the newly released Dominion game mode, which i must say is quite fun. but i won't bore you guys anymore. if you are still interested, you might as well download the game and try the stuff out yourself.
before i started playing League of Legends, i didn't know too much about the game. i've heard of it, yes, but i didn't know what it was. a friend of mine who had just started playing the game himself told me that it was something like "a mix between RTS and MMO." which it pretty much is. it's a real time strategy game with MMORPG team play, if that makes any sense. now, before some of you start groaning, "eww, i don't like MMOs," let me make one thing clear. it is NOT an MMO. it has MMO elements in it, but it is not one. we'll get more into that later.
actually, no. let's get into it now. i'm going to try to explain how the classic mode is played without being too confusing. how the game works, is that you have two teams of 5 summoners (aka players). at the start of a match, they are both placed on a large map at two separate ends which hold each of their bases. the map has three lanes (referred to as top, mid, and bot) with jungle area in between the lanes. the lanes stretch between both bases, allowing each team a clear path to travel. clear, yes, but not that safe, for each team has turrets that are set up on their respective "sides" of each lane that will target and fire on those of the opposing team. now, when the match starts, each team has minions that constantly spawn at intervals and march out from their bases. the minions are there to do the brunt work. now finally, we get to the object of the game, which is to be the first team to break into the opposing team's base and destroy their nexus. doing so wins you the game. on the way, you'll need to destroy the enemy turrets to make your path to their base less dangerous, as well as kill off the opposing players as they get in the way.
sounds simple, yes? it is, actually. it's simple, but it's not always easy. here is a short list on other gameplay aspects that you need to consider while trying to take down the other team.
each summoner's champion (the character they play as) starts out as level 1 at the beginning of each and every match. the max level per match is 18. you gain experience to level up by killing minions, killing enemy champions, and killing monster mobs that can be found in the jungle. i'm sure those of you who have played RPGs with a leveling system before know the importance of having higher levels than your opponent.
each summoner's champion starts out nakey but can buy gear during the match to boost their stats and whatnot. you need money to do that though. you accumulate money slowly but constantly during the match, and can gain extra money by last-hitting minions, killing enemy champions, and killing jungle monsters.
there is a CRAP LOAD of gear you can buy which means a crap load of different builds, as well as a lot of flexibility. (ie. if you are facing a team that uses mostly Attack Power, or magic, you can stack on items that boost your resistance to make their hits have less of an effect on you).
speaking of killing jungle monsters, there are a couple monsters in the jungle that do nice things to you and/or your team if you manage to slay them, like giving you neutral buffs or scoring you a ton of money. just be careful when traversing the jungle. it can be easy for people to sneak up on you in there.
one bad player can spell doom for the entire team. if you have someone who is constantly dying against other enemy champions, feeding them exp and money, that can hamper your team's progress as you now have to face an over leveled opponent who more than likely has far more better gear than you. not to mention, you have a teammate who is severely under leveled and prolly has little to no gear at all. and seeing how this game is extremely team-based...you're prolly screwed. not saying you can't make a comeback, but it would be very difficult. AFKers are also not cool if they are on your team.
did i mention that there are currently 84 different champions you can pick from? and a new one on the way. the developers do a very good job at cranking out new champions at a steady pace. each champion has their own strengths and weaknesses, as well as their own unique skill sets. so there is a TON of variety as far as play styles and teaming up goes.
matches usually last from about 30-45 mins. sometimes longer. maybe 20 mins if you're playing against beginner bots/a horrible team. so...don't feel the need to rush. as stated before, this is a real time STRATEGY game. rushing usually does more harm than good, especially at the beginning of a match, when everyone is lvl 1 and nakey.
so as you can see, yes, the game is simple, but it's all those tiny details that can make playing the game rather technical. because of this, it is advised that all new players play through the tutorial. like srs. the tutorial tell you everything you need to know about the gameplay, not to mention you'll prevent yourself from looking like a complete idiot when you start playing with other people. which would be your first match outside the tutorial. unless you do a custom match where it was just you and bots. still though, play the tutorial.
let's see...what else can i tell you that's somewhat important? i told you there were 84 different champions, right? well, it should be obvious that all 84 champs are not free for you to play right away. as you play matches, you earn an in game currency called IP. if you accumulate enough IP, you can then unlock new champions to use (of course, you could also pay real money to purchase cash shop currency and unlock them as well, but you don't have to). now some champions are cheaper than others, but that in no way means that the cheap champions are the sucky ones. some of the cheap champions are frickin' annoying and hard to play against if played right, so do not make the mistake of turning your nose up at them. i hate you Annie...so very, very much.
so you are probably thinking, "unlocking new champions is alright, but what if i want to try them before i buy them? i don't wanna waste IP on a champion i end up never using." well, Riot has this nice thing going on where every week, they rotate 10 free champions for people to try out and use as much as they want. so if you are interested in a particular champion, but are not sure if you should buy them or not, just wait for them to show up on the free rotation. i like this because this allows you to eventually try out all the champions for free, plus you aren't stuck using the same champions all the time even if you do manage to buy one that you don't like. and who knows. maybe you'll find a new one you play well with.
there are other things about League of Legends that i could tell you about, like summoner levels and spells, runes to further enhance your champions, and the newly released Dominion game mode, which i must say is quite fun. but i won't bore you guys anymore. if you are still interested, you might as well download the game and try the stuff out yourself.