Top 5 Things You Never Knew About League of Legends
In the world of eSports, 'League of Legends' has grown to become one of the biggest games on the planet. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we'll be counting down the Top 5 Things You Didn't Know About League Of Legends.
For this list, we’ll be looking at the most interesting bits of information, facts, and trivia surrounding one of the world’s most popular video games.
#5: It Was Originally Called "League Of Legends: Clash Of Fates"
Subtitles can add a truly epic tone to your game, but they can also make talking about it needlessly long. Leading into 'League of Legend's initial beta, trailers carried the game's more extended name. The title was originally part of a plan to name future expansions using clever acronyms. Releases like 'League of Legends: Wizards, Thieves and Fighters,' or 'Pirates With Ninjas' would become WTF and PWN respectively. The team quickly realized it was too silly of a theme to follow going forward, especially with their plans to consistently update the game rather than release expansions. After using the name for the beta, Riot Games shortened the title for the game's official launch.
#4: The Korean War is LoLst
While it's certainly no secret that South Korea is an eSports powerhouse, the money involved is baffling, to say the least. Earning a whopping $16 million dollars as of 2017, South Korea has won over a third of the game's total prize money awarded through competitions. China is their closest competitor earning over $6 million dollars, with the United States totaling just over $2 million. South Korea boasts over 500 professional players spread across some of the best teams around, leaving many tournaments dominated by Koreans. SK Telecom T1, one of South Korea’s - and by extension, the world’s - most successful teams, has earned nearly 8 of the country's $16 million dollars with their star player Faker earning $1 million himself.
#3: Celebrity Voice Actors
With over a hundred champions in 'League Of Legends', the voice talent behind the game is nothing to scoff at. Braum voice actor JB Blanc has portrayed Dr. Goodman on both 'Breaking Bad' and 'Better Call Saul.' You've probably heard Alistar's Harlan Hogan advertising everything from cars to cheese. One of the most impressive is Karen Strassman, who voices Cassiopeia, Shyvana and Fiora. Along with live-action appearances on shows like 'Weeds' and 'Silicon Valley,' Strassman's voice work has earned her over 300 acting credits. Speaking of 300's, actor David Wenham was long rumored to voice Lee Sin, while the champion is actually voiced by Vic Mignogna, the voice of Edward Elric in the English dub of Fullmetal Alchemist.
#2: Singed Was The Original Champion
Between all the crazy character designs for 'League of Legends', Singed has always had a more grounded look. Part of this basic aesthetic is due to the role Singed played in the game's early design phase. Associate Producer Steve 'Udyr' Mieczkowski has explained that Singed was the early model for designing the game's roster of characters. Mieczkowski also made clear there wasn't one first champion in the game as Singed, Annie, Sion and Sivir were all made together. Singed wasn't part of the initial lineup of champions for the beta however. Instead, he would arrive with Zilean in the game's first roster update two months later.
#1: "League Of Legends" Is The Most Watched eSport
Needless to say, with all the money involved, 'League of Legends' is a popular game amongst players and viewers alike. Month-to-month, it's the most streamed game on Twitch overall with an average of about 80 million hours watched each month. While competitors like 'Dota 2' still have the largest prize pools, people are watching 'League of Legends.’ 43 million unique viewers watched the 2016 World Championships, beating out the NBA Finals' 30 million viewers for that same year. The live events have become just as huge, with the 2014 World Finals in Seoul drawing 45, 000 attendees, and even a performance from Imagine Dragons.