League of Legends Lecture

League of Legends Lecture is a course where students explore the popular video game and cultural phenomenon League of Legends through a variety of lenses including gameplay, eSports, psychology, and game design. In class, students will analyze professional-level games in order to gain insights into the competitive scene and better their own gameplay through weekly homework assignments.

Before the millions of players and billions in revenue, before esports tournaments that draw 100 million spectators, League of Legends was more of an idea than a game. Founded in Los Angeles by friends Marc Merrill and Brandon Beck, Riot Games threw themselves into the development of a game they initially called Onslaught. They envisioned the game as an in-depth and innovative take on a genre that was already full of familiar characters and gameplay elements.

But in the year-long lead up to its October 27, 2009 release, Onslaught was still a work in progress. And when the game finally launched, it was “terrifying,” Merrill recalls. Especially because, as he puts it, they “hadn’t even finished a single champion yet.” 롤대리