During the 2021 season, alongside major domestic and international tournaments, the in-game events also caught a lot of attention from the League of Legends community. Midway through the year, just as Spring 2021 was wrapping up, Riot launched the Ruination event. This story focused on the invasion of Runeterra by the Ruined King Viego and the Black Mist. Standing against Viego to protect the world was the group known as the Lightguard, led by Lucian and Senna.
The event was introduced with a grand scale as the Black Mist spread not only across Runeterra but also to major cities around the world. However, contrary to expectations, the Ruination event ended up feeling very short and left little impact. Except for Gwen and Senna who had significant roles, the new champion Akshan, despite delivering the final blow to Viego, appeared only briefly. Many Lightguard members like Rengar, Riven, Irelia, and Pyke were completely absent despite being introduced.
Recently, Riot released a new title as part of their independent game projects based on Runeterra’s events and champions. This is the first major RPG in the League of Legends universe called Ruined King: A League of Legends Story. It’s a turn-based RPG where players control a group of characters on a quest to find and defeat Viego. Overall, the game’s story closely mirrors the Lightguard event, prompting immediate comparisons from the LoL community.
Most players agree that Ruined King’s story is much more complete and polished compared to the Ruination – Lightguard event. Although it didn’t have the same heavy marketing push, it offers a fuller and more refined experience. The game gathers many characters and weaves the story skillfully, appealing to players who love diving deep into LoL lore. While the Lightguard event felt bland, especially its ending, Ruined King fills in almost all the gaps left behind. Some players even criticized Riot for focusing the Lightguard event mainly on selling skins, while leaving out key Black Mist-related champions like Yorick, Kalista, Maokai, and Hecarim.
Ruined King’s successful launch has been a win for Riot, but it also exposed flaws in previous events. Still, with Ruined King’s strong foundation, many players hope Riot will better utilize Runeterra’s rich lore to deliver more exciting, grand, and complete events in the future.
Players can now buy Ruined King on multiple platforms, including Nintendo Switch, Steam, and Epic Games Store.
