League of Legends has been one of the most successful games of all time since its release in 2009. The Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) boasts 162 champions and counting. More recently released champions have often been stronger and more diverse than their older counterparts.
Riot Games have been pushing the limits of the game with every major update. This has left many of the older champions feeling outdated and straightforward compared to the new excitingly complex champions. They often rework old champions to catch up to the ever-evolving MOBA, but many have been neglected, and some haven’t had updates for more than a decade.
7 Alistair
Alistair is a tanky support champion that thrives on diving into the enemy team and using his crowd control to start fights. Despite his multitude of skins and his visual update in 2015, he hasn’t had a gameplay update since he was released as one of the original 17 League of Legends champions. He has struggled to keep up with modern League of Legends and only has a 3.4% play rate, making him one of the least-played support champions in the game.
Alistair is very one-dimensional in-game, often diving into an enemy team using his combo of abilities and then dying in the hope he has helped his team. It has been 11 years since his release with zero gameplay changes. There is so much Riot Games can do to bring him into the modern game, and he is crying out for a rework.
6 Nocturne
Nocturne is the embodiment of fear and nightmares themselves. He is a brilliant champion conceptually, jumping out of the shadows to quickly claim his prey. The eternal nightmare has been played in the jungle, top lane, and mid-lane since his release in 2011. He is a very popular champion when he is strong but his current 3.3% pick rate highlights how outdated he really is.
Nocturne hasn’t had a gameplay update since his release in 2011, and it really shows. Riot Games have found it hard to balance him due to the simple nature of his kit. With one of the best ultimates in the game, he either goes in and one-shots someone or doesn’t and immediately dies. As a champion, he is very one-dimensional but with a well-executed rework, he could be an incredible asset to the game.
5 Nasus
Often considered one of the simplest champions in the game, Nasus was released in the first year of League of Legends back in 2009. He is a fighter/ tank that scales well into the late game with his life steal but is almost comically simplistic compared to the modern top-lane champions.
He walks towards his enemies and hits them, simple as that. Nasus hasn’t had a gameplay update since his release in 2009 and desperately needs one. His kit just isn't worthy of his legendary demigod lore and a rework could bring back much-needed life to the champion.
4 Shaco
Shaco has been one of the most polarizing champions since his release in 2009. The demon jester is based on trickery and deception using his invisibility and trickster boxes to assassinate his enemies. He is incredibly annoying to play against and hasn’t had a gameplay update since his release 13 years ago.
Shaco feels very out of place in League of Legends as he functions so differently from other champions in the game. There isn’t much counter-play to his kit and he is horrible to play against. He is in desperate need of a significant rework to bring him back in line with the game’s ideals and the way matches function.
3 Karthus
While Karthus may have one of the coolest ultimate abilities in the game, he feels like a mid-lane mage that has been forced into the jungle. The death singer is a jungler that isn’t great at ganking and often finds it hard to interact with lanes.
He functions best when he continuously farms his camps, doesn’t really interact with other champions on the map, and uses his ultimate in big fights. Karthus is unlike any jungler and not in a good way as his 2.4% play rate shows. A rework could really bring the best out of the champion - who hasn’t had an update since his release in 2009 - and bring him back in line with modern junglers.
2 Singed
It often feels that Singed doesn’t have a place in League of Legends. He is most commonly used in the top lane but works best when he doesn’t interact much with his lane opponent, which almost defeats the point of lanes. The mad chemist mostly just runs away from his enemies and hopes they chase him. He hasn’t had a gameplay update since his release in 2009, and it shows.
Singed is frustrating to play against and isn’t much fun to play as his 2% play rate indicates. It is unclear whether he is meant to be a tank, ability power-based bruiser, or something entirely different. He is a melee champion that doesn’t really want to hit other champions. It is a bizarre combination that Riot Games needs to rework if they want him to be relevant in the game.
1 Teemo
Those who want to troll their team should pick Teemo. He is one of the original 17 champions and hasn’t had a gameplay update since the game’s release, and it shows. He is a ranged top-lane marksman that doesn’t have many strengths and is often outclassed by his top-lane opposition. Even his ultimate - which is meant to be a champion's strongest ability - can be easily countered by a sweeper or control ward.
It has been 13 years since Riot Games did anything to change Teemo’s gameplay, and it shows. He does nothing in team fights, isn’t a great laner, and doesn’t bring anything special to the rift. Teemo is an iconic champion in League of Legends but his 2% pick rate shows how much he needs a rework to become useful in-game.
League of Legends is available for Mac and PC.