What are Assist Actions in Project L and how will they work?

When Project L changed into a 2v2 fighting game, it opened up a whole new world of possibilities when it comes to how combat will work. After all, League of Legends is a team-based strategy title, so why not have a team-based fighting game as well? In a recent dev diary, the developers opened up a bit more about what players can expect.

It’s also worth noting that anything present in this article about the game might change as development progresses. Project L is still very much under construction, so everything from what characters can do to the names of in-game mechanics might change.

That said, it’s very exciting to see how this title has developed since it was initially announced.

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Project L reveals some of their tag systems - what are Assist Actions?

What began its life as a one-on-one fighter became something greater - a 2v2 fighter. While I have not gotten hands-on with Project L yet, watching the video gives me a fair amount of insight into what I expect.

It very much appears to be in the same vein as many of the classic anime fighters. You have several tag mechanics - Assist Actions, Handshake Tag, and Dynamic Save. We’re going to focus on the Assist Actions, which do exactly what you expect them to.

When you press the Assist Action button, your secondary character will leap onto the screen to aid your point character. Then, they’ll perform a specific maneuver, such as Darius coming in swinging with his axe. What a maneuver it is! It’s a wide arc strike, and if you aren’t blocking, you’ll probably get hit. However, it’s more than simply just pressing a button and that’s it.

In Project L, you can also charge your Assist Action, thus changing what will happen. In the example shown on screen, the charged assist for Darius was a charge forward and shoulder tackle. Each character will have two Assist Actions, but the developers haven't stated how that’s going to work yet.

It could work one of two ways. Since Project L is a 2v2 fighter, you might have both of your trigger buttons (L2/R2) be Assist Actions. That way, you could be flexible in the manner in which you call in your partner. Conversely, it could also be more like Marvel vs. Capcom 2, giving you the option to pick your assist for each fight.

I feel like it will most likely be the former, and you will have both options in battle. That would make things far more interesting and allow for some potentially incredible juggles.

The latest video displayed several uses for your assist. You can use it to stop someone from being aggressive, or, if you’ve got the practice time in, you can use your assist action to extend your combos, making long, painful chains of attacks go on and on.

We didn't see many champions in this latest video, but we can guess some of the potential assist attacks. Blitzcrank might use his grab or knock-up to keep opponents in perilous positions. While much of Project L is still a mystery, it’s nice to see the developers open up and talk about more of the in-game mechanics to keep fans excited.