Riot opens up about future of Wild Rift esports after overwhelming community response

Wild Rift, the mobile iteration of League of Legends, is developed by Riot Games. The esports scenes of LoL and Valorant, Riot’s other IP, are pretty bright, as the developer has managed to organize top tournaments. However, the company has not ventured into the mobile gaming genre as it is an entirely different area.

Mobile titles have become very popular recently, and with a plethora of players getting involved, it is natural that companies want to invest a lot more.

We’ve made plenty of announcements about our tournaments, but haven’t spoken too much about our goals. Join the Head of Wild Rift esports as he reveals his vision and philosophy for the future of the game's competitive ecosystem. 👀 https://t.co/g5kZYxS3Lw pic.twitter.com/H9zs7tuZjk

— League of Legends: Wild Rift (@wildrift) July 20, 2021

Until recently, Riot had not been very active in the esports scene of Wild Rift. However, the overwhelming number of players who have been a part of this game has encouraged the company to start developing the esports scene of their mobile game.

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Riot’s plan for Wild Rift’s future

The publisher has said that players and their enthusiasm towards the game made them feel that they should focus on the mobile version.

Riot mentioned in a recent post:

“We see a great appetite for Wild Rift esports. Since we announced the game back in 2019, influencers, pro teams, partners, and the media have constantly asked us if we are doing esports for Wild Rift and how they can join. Not doing it would mean stamping out the fire for competition that is very real in the community.”

The American organization added:

“We’re building a new esports ecosystem that is self-sustaining and independent of LoL Esports on PC. There is a lot to learn and leverage from the broader League of Legends ecosystem, but Wild Rift esports is not viewed here at Riot Games as a gateway to LoL Esports. Being the Wild Rift World Champion should feel just as amazing and prestigious as the LoL World Champion. Winning in Wild Rift is the ultimate goal.”

Riot has not provided any roadmap for Wild Rift, even though they have provided some initial plans regarding development and investment.

We're just at the beginning of the journey to build #wildriftesports and have an ambitious vision to make it one of the biggest esports in the world! Here's what our vision and approach to building the ecosystem look like. https://t.co/Isfw4i7HGm https://t.co/2TvvVejUzd

— Leo Faria (@lhfaria) July 20, 2021

Riot also added that Wild Rift esports needs stability to thrive:

“We’re starting by focusing our efforts on Wild Rift at the professional level. One of the things we learned throughout the years is that for a sport to be successful, it needs stability. Organizations need to trust that there will be tournaments to play in and that Wild Rift esports is here to stay. That allows them to commit to building strong teams and ultimately make the pro-player career attractive and a meaningful pursuit. That’s our goal. Sustainability is key to developing professionalism. Eventually, we will invest more energy into grassroots play, but we want to ensure our players first have an apex level of competition.”

The company’s aspirations seem bright, and the future of Wild Rift has never been better. Even though this could take some time to manifest, the game’s fans can start practicing to make their mark on the big stage.