Champions That Must Be In Project L
We know that Project L is far off. But after learning more from a super secret meeting out at EVO Japan, more details came out about the game. However, one thing we still don’t have much clarity on is the roster of champions that will drop with its launch. And with it being a tag fighter, we can expect for there to be loads of fighters to choose from.
So while the game might be far off, here's some ideas on which champions would be fun if they got their chance in the game. Just to be clear, this is all total speculation on our part and just a fun exercise on how some of the champions could work in a fighting game context.
Already Confirmed: Darius, Ahri, Jinx, Ilaoi, Ekko
We’ve already seen quite a bit of gameplay from these champions, besides Illaoi. In terms of their playstyles they all seem very well defined and we were able to glean quite a bit from Riot’s showcases of the game. And while Riot’s gone out of its way to say how early that footage was from the the development cycle, Darius and Ekko, in particular, looked amazing and had very clear gameplans.
Darius seems to be a powerhouse in-fighter. Everything we’ve seen of his kit either gets him to his opponent or brings them to him. Jinx on the other hand is indeed a zoner. However she seemed to try and stay around midscreen. Ahri gave off some heavy MvC Storm vibes with her air dashes and Ekko looks to be one of the game’s setplay/mixup characters.
Normie Champions: Garen, Ryze, Lux, Miss Fortune, Master Yi
In League of Legends proper, these are some of the starter champions that help you learn each position on Summoner’s Rift. In Project L, they could serve the same function, but with a fighting game twist.
Garen can function as the Ryu to Darius’ Ken by also being an in-fighter. Ryze and Lux can work as fighters with weaker normals but fantastic special move options. Yi can introduce new players to the concept of rush down and throwing out a multitude of attacks over a short period of time. While Miss Fortune functions as the game’s beginner-level zoner, peppering opponents from afar.
Complete the K/DA Set: Akali, Evelynn, Kai’sa
Listen, with Project L being confirmed as a free to play game, Riot’s going to need to sell costumes and stages for this thing. And I can’t think of too many skins events that were better than K/DA, Riot’s in-universe girlcrush K-pop band. (Yes, I know Star Guardians is also amazing). But these three, along with Ahri, could potentially have some of the coolest costumes in the game and gameplay-wise would be different enough to justify their inclusion.
Evelynn’s potential super move based on her R would be fantastic enough. Or giving Kai’sa all sorts of great movement options to lean into her nimble playstyle in League. All of them could easily end up some of the top fighters in the game, or at least some of the most interesting to play.
Perhaps we could also get some versions of the outfits they wore on “The Baddest” which have not been released in League proper. But with that said, there’s a ton of League skin lines that could make their way to Project L. Some include Star Guardians, High Noon, PROJECT, Pentakill and True Damage.
___ From Arcane: Caitlyn, Vi, Viktor & Jayce
Like the KDA champions, it would be a missed opportunity for Riot not to include the principal cast from the LoL Netflix series, Arcane. Arcane dropped to rave reviews and its cast were catapulted to some of the most recognizable in gaming, virtually overnight. Two of the popular characters, Jinx and Ekko are already confirmed. But bringing in Vi, Caitlyn, Viktor and Jayce would be a fantastic addition to the game thematically.
Jayce is your quintessential stance character. Swapping his hammer from close range to medium ranged zoning. He’d function a lot like Nightwing in Injustice, where his stance is more about his spacing than stringing together combos from both stances. Viktor could wait to become DLC, because we don’t want to spoil the kiddies. But Vi is a no-brainer and could easily be one of the game’s standout rush down fighters.
Fan Favorites: Yasuo, Lee Sin, Malphite, Morgana
Now we get to the champions you see all the time in a game of League. These are some fan favorites that probably should be included anyway because they are so popular. There’s plenty of these in fighting games. Ken of Street Fighter and Sub-Zero/Scorpion of Mortal Kombat are perennially popular regardless of their effectiveness in game. So let's take that same mindset and apply it to Project L.
Yasuo and Lee Sin represent two sides of the popular pick. While the former has a reputation of being a troll or try hard pick, the latter is often welcomed and lauded as a player of skill. Malphite is popular in casual game modes like ARAM and URF, mostly because of his easy to use ultimate. And Morgana, like Lux, is often a player's entry point into the support role. But her kit is all about locking players down and controlling space which could be an interesting playstyle in a fighting game.
We still need more Ninjas…er Ionians: Zed, Shen, Jhin
Ninjas are cool. This is a fact of life that we all must adhere to. And thus, every good fighting game MUST have ninjas. We’ve already covered one of them in Akali, but there’s two more ninjas that Project L must include to be seen as a top flight fighting game. That’s Zed and Shen. And just to round it out, let's throw in the murderous theater kid Jhin in as well.
Zed is particularly intriguing as his kit in LoL is all about manipulating his own shadow. These shadow clones mimic his abilities before disappearing after a while. Needless to say, Zed could easily function like Noob Saibot from the Mortal Kombat series. Noob tosses out clones to set traps, grab his opponent or attack from irregular angles. It also helps that Noob Saibot is also a ninja. Shen on the other hand is all about his magical sword. This could open his gameplay up to be more of a brawler/setplay hybrid where he dashes in for combos, tosses his sword somewhere only to recall it to extend those combos or end them.
And Jhin, well Jhin is a unique character. And while he could function well as a zoner, kinda like Happy Chaos from Guilty Gear…only with just four bullets. Always. Only. Four. Bullets.
Because You Need Grapplers: Sett & Udyr
At the end of the day, Project L also needs some fighters tossing folks around. In contemporary fighting games, the grappler has changed. While Zangief from Street Fighter might have been the prototype, there’s now fresher takes on grappling. There are hit grapplers like Laura and Manon from SF or even chain grapplers like Angel from KOF and King from Tekken. Sett and Udyr could easily fill this role.
As a pit fighter, I feel like Sett would play more in the traditional role of a grappler. In League, he’s a champion totally ok with taking a few hits, as long as he can get in and nab you. His ultimate is actually a massive powerbomb or DDT so clearly, he wants to slam you. Udyr however, can harness the power of animal spirits. So I could see him as a stance/hit grappler where changing to a different form changes the grabs he hits you with.
Boss Characters: Mordekaiser, Vel’Beth, Viego, Aatrox, Volibear
A good boss character should always feel larger than life. By the time you reach the end of the single player the boss rush should feel nearly insurmountable. If they don’t, you run the risk of your single player feeling like an afterthought. So while most of the champions in League of Legends are powerful, few of them are existential threats like these five.
Mordekaiser and Viego represent fallen humans. While Viego is corrupted by magic, Mordekaiser harnesses it to become League’s version of Sauron. Vel’beth on the other hand is an apex predator from “the Void”, an alternate dimension where unearthly monsters reign. That leaves Volibear and Aatrox who are essentially gods. Voilbear is a god of Storms and thus has command over lightning. While Aatrox is a “darkin” demon that literally killed Runeterra’s god of war. So needless to say these are some badass champions that will totally suffer from SNK Boss Syndrome.
There’s so many that could easily fit into the game and we haven’t even scratched the surface. And for all we know there could be a series of champions that come to Project L first and arrive in League later. But let us know which champions you think should make it into Project L over at our Twitter! And let’s hope that we get some information
