Should Riot polish and fix existing League of Legends champions instead of frequently releasing new ones?

Riot Games' frequent release of new champions has been brought into question lately by the League of Legends community. Some players claim that certain releases are just cash grabs for skin ideas that will generate revenue. There are a number of champions who are long overdue for a rework and players are calling for them.

Rework cho gath, thats all

— Ken Harold Samporo (@your_atreus) December 31, 2020

Why is Riot releasing so many new champions?

Over the last year Riot has released six new champions compared to the previous year where they released four. Now coming into 2021, Riot has teased the release of two new champions.

Releasing new champions is a profitable gambit for Riot because it entices old and new players alike. It also generates a new line of revenue through the purchase of skins and bundles for the new champion that is released.

If players look at the roadmap of previous reworks they will see how hit and miss that endeavor can be. The amount of work put into champion reworks is something that many people fail to consider, but if players look at the success rate, they'd understand why Riot keeps releasing new champions instead.

Fixing existing champions has proved ineffective

Yorick, Urgot, Trundle, Taric, Ryze, Rengar, Poppy, Graves, Galio, and Evelynn are all champions who have received a rework or two in their time. The only champions on this list that are relatively playable in the current meta are Graves, Galio, and Evelynn. Sure, Poppy, Taric, Trundle, and Urgot have a place to be played, but that place is often niche and not very common in the meta.

So, if three out of the ten reworks have been mildly successful, players should be able to understand why Riot leans more into creating new champions. This does not change the fact that players want to see their favorite old champions get an update.

If the developers were to put the amount of effort into marketing champion reworks like they marketed the release of Seraphine, they would find success. The player base for League of Legends is so vast and loyal that if someone saw that an old champion who was unplayable was getting a rework, they would get excited for it. Then again, there is no money in re-releasing a champion everyone already owns.

Visual Reworks for many older champs :)Udyr, Caitlyn, Shyvana, Leblanc, Janna, Rammus, VI, Ahri, Blitzcrank etc.That would make me more happy than just adding a bunch of new champs.

— Lonystal (@lonystal) December 31, 2020

New champions released frequently equals revenue, but the community deserves better

At the end of the day, Riot Games is a business that needs to make money in order to continue producing a lasting product that draws new players and retains old ones. As time passes though, the old players will fade away when the game becomes unfamiliar and their favorite champions become obsolete.

Riot Games has grown to be a huge company with many successful and fun titles. This very fact should be enough proof that it has the resources to dedicate to improving old champions and releasing new ones simultaneously. Fixing and polishing champions happens on a regular basis via patches, but that isn't the same as fully reworking old ones.

The League of Legends community will continue to be given new things to enjoy from Riot, but it may not always be exactly what they want. If players are patient and just focus on enjoying the game, Riot will eventually change or release something they will find enjoyable.