Clone... or something new? A review of League of Legends, specifically for Gamer.ru

I will skip the background about what Defense of the Ancients is, the famous map known as DotA. I also won’t describe the failures of previous games inspired by DotA, you will find all of this in the overview "Was There a War? A Review of the Game from a Doter's Perspective" of the game Heroes of Newerth, by the respected Unleashed.

What distinguishes this game from its main competitor Heroes of Newerth, henceforth just HoN, which has already appealed to gamers and currently leads in the number of beta testers. Specifically testers, because both games are still in testing and are gradually being supplemented, and are expected to be released in the fourth quarter of this year.

- Firstly, LoL will be a free-to-play game after release, while HoN will cost around $30 (the current preorder price).

- Secondly, among the developers of LoL is the famous Guinsoo, one of the fathers of DotA, who worked on the map before Ice Frog.

- Finally, LoL is not a clone, but a completely different game, even though it may seem similar at first glance...

A Bit About HoN

My acquaintance with this game started with a very interesting review. I was surprised; I didn't know anything about this game until then, although I personally am a huge fan of DotA, even if retired.

I started wandering through the blog and the Russian forum, searching for the coveted invite to the game. And I was lucky; I found one, not only for myself but also for a friend.

I downloaded the client, logged in, and started playing... Of course, my first impression was, "Wow, this is awesome, what a game, and finally on a new engine." The graphics in HoN are very beautiful, the effects and animation are top-notch. You quickly get used to the fact that all heroes and items have different names. A Doter doesn't need to relearn how to play; all attributes and skills remain the same, only the appearance has changed.

"Only the appearance"; this is roughly how things stand with HoN. I’m not saying the game isn’t successful; on the contrary, everything turned out great, with many new opportunities that were lacking in the old Warcraft. But it’s still the same old DotA, which many have grown tired of...

LoL, A Name Worth Noting

Getting an invite to LoL is not difficult for anyone; for the US beta, they are currently given to anyone who wants one, while in the EURO beta, you need to wait for an invitation via email, but that’s not a 100% guarantee. The EURO version updates later than the US; personally, I started with EURO but switched to US. For some reason, in the EURO version, you cannot have your login match your in-game nickname.

My first thought: lol, what is this?! o_O

Yes, yes, cartoonish graphics, which may immediately push away many fans. But don’t rush to judgment! First impressions can be misleading; try playing, it’s very beautiful, and that style fits the genre.

After installation and updates, the most interesting part, the game itself, opens up to you.

There’s a lot new that affects the gameplay. Runes, a talent tree, and much more that depends on your account level.

Your profile, or rather in this screenshot, mine :)

In your profile window, all the important information is available. Your level, recent matches, runes count, leaders.

1. Runes

The game features a rune book, with each new level of your account unlocking an additional slot for a rune in your book. Obtaining runes is purely random; you just need to click the corresponding button. At least for now, the process has been simplified for the convenience of beta testers.

There are 3 types of runes - Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, each containing 4 colors: red, blue, yellow, and special (for them, there are 3 large slots). Naturally, the higher the Tier, the better the rune. Unwanted runes can be combined in a special menu to create something new.

The book has 3 pages opened for various builds, for example, mage - agile - tank, or more refined - for a particular character. Runes are not consumed when added to the book; you can rearrange each page.

2. Talents

Looks like WoW, doesn’t it?)

With each new level, you receive 1 talent point, which can be distributed in a special talent tree to unlock something new. Runes and talents are created to make each player’s style unique. They don’t give you 100 hp or 1000 strength; they are very modest, but even that allows you to create your personal style.

3. Abilities

With a certain level, you unlock new abilities; there can be 2 such abilities in the game. They mainly focus on teleportation, slowing down, and speeding up characters, and have very high cooldowns.

The Battlefield

Searching for servers is quite ordinary, but here LoL loses to HoN, which has many icons visible in the game list that indicate the game type and settings. In LoL, it's modest: nickname - server name - map (there are several (: ).

After searching and the long-awaited start, you will need to choose a character; they are not classified into "good and bad"; both teams have a common list, so don’t be surprised if you encounter a twin opponent. Then you choose 1 of 3 pages in your rune book and 2 abilities. That’s it; preparation is complete.

All as usual, the shop and the fountain equivalent - the area.

You immediately see that there is nothing superfluous in the game that was in its predecessor from strategy and did not serve any purpose. You are tied to your character and only target your goal. This excludes the shout "Why did I die? I clicked to run back to the respawn!?" that happens with erroneous mouse clicks.

On the screen, you can see your portrait, inventory, useful windows (for example, score) and long HP and MP bars.

The maximum level in the game is 18, there are 5 abilities, and 3 for the ultimate. However, each hero has its passive ability, which is active immediately. It can be extra armor, drain, or even the ability to resurrect after death if the egg is not destroyed within 6 seconds, like with the ice phoenix.

At full speed, we rush to the store...

The in-game shop is one, but has a tree-like system.

In the shop, there is a field of recommended items for your character, which will greatly help newcomers.

The game has one downside; items cannot be rearranged in the inventory since you always want to have potions closer to your fingers. I hope they fix this soon.

There are many diverse items in the game, but unlike HoN, they are all newly designed.

You can buy some buff for 4 minutes

In the forest, familiar neutrals dwell; they willingly give you their gold and experience, but you first have to pressure them :)

But they also provide... a temporary buff! Different neutrals have different buffs.

Quiet, don’t give us away; it’s an ambush.

An interesting element is the grass, in which a character becomes invisible, and the enemy only notices you at close range.

Confuse the enemy while escaping? Sure. Set up an ambush? Grass is always at your service.

For those who may not enjoy it, there is a winter map with a different landscape where it does not exist.

Bloodshed!

Finishing off creeps yields extra money; you can’t finish off your own.

A gnome with a laser pointer in the tower shows who is being attacked at the moment; very convenient.

The tower will only pay attention to you after the last of your creeps is dead or if it’s aggressive towards your hero.

All combat logs in the game can be configured

The concept of critical hits exists for every character, the odds just vary. Moreover, abilities in the game are called abilities, and there are several items that add "+" to this parameter.

This is done so that mages also have potential in long games. In DotA, any mage at level 4 dealt 300 damage, and after 40 minutes, they would still deal 300 damage, even when everyone had thousands of HP, and they don’t care anymore. :)

Danger - to the base!

Teleporting to the base in the game is also a separate skill. It has no cooldown and casts in 8 seconds, and as you can guess, it can be interrupted.

Finished off the tower - a lot of money :)

The End

That’s all I wanted to tell you about this game. It’s not DotA, even if it resembles it. This is just a review; it does not carry 100% information about the game.

Verdict: The game turned out splendidly; it is a must-see!

How to get an invite, you'll find out here.

Respectfully, your dmit.

If something is off, please don’t be too harsh; I don’t have the same writing experience for guides as some of our titans do.

I hope you enjoyed it ;)