A huge aspect of League of Legends has always revolved around skins and cosmetics. It's what keeps the game thriving, after all. The contrast between the first skins LoL introduced and those available today is striking. Splash art continues to improve as technology advances. However, despite Riot's efforts, players seem to disagree on whether the quality of LoL skins is improving.
Decline in Quality
This topic has sparked numerous discussions on Reddit recently. With Riot heavily emphasizing skins, the quantity available has skyrocketed. And as the saying goes, quantity and quality often don't align. Some users even argue that Legendary skins fail to stand out compared to regular ones, essentially becoming glorified chromas.
LoL players suggest that this decline in quality may stem from Riot's teams not being adequately staffed, despite consistently releasing at least three new skins with each patch. Having a small team handle such a large number of cosmetics inevitably leads to less attention to detail and increased pressure to meet deadlines. Let's not forget just a few month ago, in January, Riot went through serious lay-offs, firing 11% of their workforce. It seems like this issue won't be resolved anytime soon.
"Yep. Lower the quality, charge the same, make more skins, make them as generic and broadly appealing as possible. That's where the money is. It's not about making the highest quality skin they can, it's about making the cheapest thing they can get away with."
Given that Riot relies on skins to finance a free MOBA game, it's understandable why there's such a rush to release new content, regardless of its quality. Ultimately, as long as fans continue purchasing what LoL offers, the quality is unlikely to improve.
Some argue that recent skin lines feel "soulless and creatively bankrupt." Of course, this is subjective, as Riot explores different cultures and topics to add spice. Is the issue truly with the themes themselves, or is it the rush to produce more content for sale? Do the designers and artists have sufficient time to capture the essence of the champion and make them fit seamlessly into the specific skin line?
Another issue is that many skin lines make all included skins feel very similar and lacking in uniqueness to the character. It's almost as if the champions are simply putting on costumes, with their unique personalities failing to shine through. Simultaneously, this makes the skin line itself feel superficial, despite many of them having intriguing backstories.
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The Problem with Splash Art
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League of Legends splash art is completely different from what it used to be. Of course, this is due to the technical changes in digital drawing. We can see these quality changes not only in the portrayal of champions, but also in their physical appearance and the ambiance. The artists behind LoL's artwork are masters of light and color. Just take a look at the original Pentakill Sona Splash art and the new Sona Immortal Journey skin. Brighter, delicate colors, ambient light accents, depth, and of course, overall better anatomy of the character.
However, LoL fans have noticed that recently, splash art seems disconnected from the skin. All female champions in the game tend to have the same faces. You can't really tell if a champion is Morgana or Leblanc. This phenomenon is often referred to as 'Same Face Syndrome'. Essentially, it embodies the idea that most women in League of Legends look the same - with tiny noses, puffy lips, and cat eyes.
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There are a few exceptions, such as Illaoi, Briar, Vex, and Jinx, who can be distinguished solely by their faces. This issue is starting to extend to more recent male champions as well, such as Yone, Aphelios, Hwei, and Viego.
What are your thoughts on this issue? Do you believe quality and quantity don't always go hand in hand when it comes to League of Legends skins?
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