Riot Games Rewrites League of Legends Lore, Pisses Fans Off

I dont write for League of Legends as much as I think Im supposed too.  Probably because I enjoy the game too much so I know I couldnt possibly remain objective when I write, meaning I might report on some drivel that only I care about and has no impact in the broader gaming world.  That said, since when have I ever been subjective writing an article?  Lets do this.

Did you know that League of Legends, aside from being the number-one most played MOBA and one of the most competitive games in the E-sports scenes, has a plot?   Yeah, a lot of people dont.  The basic premise was that Runeterra is a fantasy land ravaged by countless wars, and to curb the bloodshed and prevent the end of the world, the city-states of the world opted into the creation of an Institute of War where their greatest and most powerful champions could fight (under the control of a Summoner) to resolve political squabbles as an alternative to outright warfare. 

The key word in all that, however, was.  Because Riot Games announced yesterday they plan to do a complete hard reset on the lore of the game, and erase the old story to be replaced with a brand new oneone where the gameplay and story are completely separate and never shall the two intercept. 

As riot employee Tommy Gnox explains

Essentially, it means that the game and story arent one-to-one copies of each other. League as a game is about creating awesome gameplay, while League as a story is about creating deep, vibrant characters and factions inhabiting an expansive world. We dont want to limit story because of gameplay, just like we wouldnt limit gameplay because of story we want both of them (and all the other elements of League) to have the freedom to be as great as they possibly can be.

That means, I suppose, that League of Legends the setting will have a developing story, while League of Legends the game will have no barring or importance in that story.  It also means things like Summoners, the Institute of War, and Summoners Rift are no longer things in Runeterra.  It makes sense they would go this direction, considering it didnt make much sense lore-wise why a guy would team up with his arch-nemesis to murder his own sister, but its certainly annoyed a surprisingly large number of fans of the old loreso much so that the lore section of the forums has basically exploded.

Still, doesnt look like Riots changing its mind.  But let it be a warning for aspiring game devs: geeks love their lore.  Be careful what you do with it.