Akali’s rework two years ago has caused numerous issues for the champion. With her powerful ratios and overloaded kit, she has no glaring weaknesses. Even before her release, League of Legends pros predicted the problems that would come with her rework.
Riot Games’ designer Bradford “CertainlyT” Wenban faced backlash for Akali’s rework. The community was frustrated because the champion was so overpowered that it was nearly impossible to play an immobile champion against her.
CertainlyT has been responsible for other champion designs that are disliked by the community, such as Yasuo, Kalista, Zoe, and Aphelios. Initial feedback on the Akali rework was negative due to his involvement.
Issues with old Akali
The old version of Akali had a simpler kit, making her a stat check champion. With targeted abilities and no expression of skill, she was not a meta pick and had a low win rate.
Rework problems
In the rework, Patch v8.15 introduced a more overloaded Akali. While it added a clear display of skill, it also introduced “true” stealth, which became problematic. Many mechanics from the rework were eventually removed, but the champion remained unbalanced.
- Ranged Q – high damage, healing, and wave-clear potential.
- “True” stealth – allowed Akali to dive champions under turrets without penalty.
- Insane mobility – three dashes with no target requirement and ability to go over walls.
- Brief stun and slow – made her difficult to deal with during laning phase and teamfights.
Competitive play
In the 2020 season, Akali has not seen play in a single game in the LCS or LEC. She is banned in every match due to her ability to invalidate immobile champions, especially ADCs.
Champions should have clear strengths and weaknesses for balance. CertainlyT went too far with Akali’s rework, giving her tools like “true stealth” that allowed her to bypass tower aggro and easily dive enemy champions. Her mobility remains an issue even after the removal of certain mechanics.
Possible solutions
While the old Akali had its flaws, it had visible weaknesses. Reverting to her old kit and making adjustments from there could bring balance. Riot has shown a willingness to revert reworked champions if they are problematic, as seen with Rengar and LeBlanc.
Akali should have visible weaknesses, be revealed by pink wards, and have a lower “back-out” range on her E ability. Reverting to her old kit would be a good start, as it was more balanced with clearly defined strengths and weaknesses.
Future of Akali
Riot has made constant changes to Akali, but they often end up making her either unplayable or pick/ban. To eliminate these issues, Riot should go back to a point where Akali was considered healthy (pre-rework) and build from there.
Akali rework, League of Legends, champion, kit, balance