Riot Games Improves Fan Interaction in League of Legends
Riot Games is making strides to better engage with League of Legends fans. The developer has recently released anime-style videos dedicated to actual players and has launched the League Partner Program to support video content creators. Last month, Riot continued this initiative with a streamer showmatch at the NA LCS finals in Oakland, California, featuring the most popular streamers in the League community.
Riot’s ode to fans began with a massive project in September—a hand-painted mural of beloved streamer Michael “Imaqtpie” Santana on the side of a building in Los Angeles. The mural was designed as a “Welcome home” for Imaqtpie, who had moved away to become a full-time streamer and returned to LA around the start of the 2018 Summer Split.
Chesney “JustMoose” Lattuga, Riot’s art director, explained that the mural was part of Riot’s community-first initiative. The company wanted to focus less on the game itself and more on the creators, such as streamers and artists like Allie Jean, who was commissioned to paint the mural.
The community responded positively to the mural, with the images reaching the top of the game’s Reddit community within hours of their release on Twitter. Imaqtpie himself also shared the mural on Twitter, posing next to Jean, who has been his YouTube channel artist for about two years.
The idea for the mural came from Eugene, Jean’s boyfriend and QT’s video editor. He thought she would be perfect to create a unique illustration of Imaqtpie for his channel, which would set him apart from other League YouTubers using generic game artwork. The project was much bigger than Jean initially expected, with the illustration being painted on a 10-story building.
Seeing her artwork blown up and displayed in the real world was surreal for Jean, especially because it validated her dreams to her family. Her Asian mom, who had reservations about her pursuing an artistic career, saw the mural as a significant achievement.
When Jean saw the mural in person for the first time, she was overcome with emotion and nearly crashed her car. The impact of the mural goes beyond just the individual players featured in it. It serves as an open letter to every person who has played the game, acknowledging their presence and thanking them for their support.
Overall, Riot’s efforts to engage with the League of Legends community through initiatives like the mural project and the League Partner Program are a step in the right direction for building a stronger connection with fans.
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