Since the release of League of Legends in 2009, the popular online game has expanded and adapted at every turn.
The most recent significant changes to the game focus primarily on game modes – which are different ways that League of Legends can be played.
The most popular map is Summoner’s Rift, a 5v5 battlefield with three lanes and a jungle full of monsters. This is the place that beginners learn to play, and professionals go to compete to win millions.
League of Legends has been home to more than a dozen different game modes over the last decade, most of which have been temporary or rotate in and out of playability. However, a handful have joined League of Legends as permanent additions that receive frequent updates from Riot Games to keep them fun and refreshing.
Recently, League decided to make their newest game mode creation, Teamfight Tactics, into one of these permanent additions – and with that decision also came the announcement of another permanent game mode’s retirement.
Twisted Treeline has long been known as the second mode on League of Legends. The 3v3 battlefield has a smaller map than Summoner’s Rift and its own features, such as a monster named Vilemaw, lockable altars, and two lanes instead of three.
While TT has never been as popular as SR, it does have its own player base. Over the years, as Riot has updated it less and less, the number of players queueing up for TT has also receded.
According to Riot’s recent update on the state of all League of Legends game modes, “Outside of the player population, Twisted Treeline’s art, map design, and even game pacing don’t meet today’s current quality bar and player needs.” Because of this, the game will be retiring.
Teamfight Tactics is here to stay! Check out this article for more info regarding the future of TFT, Nexus Blitz, ARURF and more! https://t.co/1VU8In8DvI
— League of Legends (@LeagueOfLegends) July 31, 2019
Now, players are taking to the League of Legends boards to share their opinions on TT’s retirement.
While some people agree that Twisted Treeline’s time has come, others are frustrated that Riot Games is doing away with the game mode without really trying to save it.
As players have pointed out, Twisted Treeline hasn’t been updated in four years now, and its last complete rework dated back seven years ago in 2012 – and it wasn’t even well-received. Even with a lack of attention from Riot, though, TT still managed to keep enough players around for the game to stay running.
For these reasons, players are confused and irritated with the gaming giant for seemingly neglecting Twisted Treeline and then slashing it off the game without any recent attempts to revive it.
Among the suggestions for how to make TT more playable are changes to basic things like minions and turrets, as well as alterations to TT-specific things like the monster Vilemaw and the use of altars. Just as Riot updated ARAM’s champions to fit the map better, TT could also revitalize the game just by making some critical balance changes.
Since Twisted Treeline hasn’t been in a great spot population-wise, some players also suggest adding things like TT-specific missions to create more incentive for people to want to play the mode, and eventually get back into it on a larger scale.
Some players feel like the addition of Teamfight Tactics inspired the end of Twisted Treeline, so that Riot can focus more on sustaining its success rather than updating older game modes like TT. Others aren’t surprised by this choice, and given Riot’s lack of attention toward TT, felt that it was coming for a long time.
Whatever the reason, Twisted Treeline will officially be retiring from League of Legends at the end of the current season.
