It looks like card game fans excited to try Legends of Runeterra, the League of Legends spin-off, sooner than expected. Riot Games today revealed that it plans to get Legends of Runeterra available to as many people as possible very soon. The game is currently available to a limited few as part of a closed beta, but that closed beta will soon be ending as Riot starts Legends of Runeterra's newly announced open beta. The open beta will start on January 24.
According to Riot, the excitement for Legends of Runeterra when it was announced in late 2019 was incredible. Pre-registrations for the game, which offered an opportunity to play Legends of Runeterra's closed beta, were much higher than expectations. It was this wave of positivity that led Riot to "hit the gas" and make an open beta the team's next major priority. That goal has come to fruition surprisingly quickly, replacing Riot's previous plan to launch waves of closed betas.
With the start of Legends of Runeterra's open beta, several new features will also be introduced to the game. The biggest one is the game's new ranked mode. As its name implies, Legends of Runeterra will employ ranked matchmaking in this mode. Players will be able to climb up through Iron, Bronze, Gold, Platinum, and higher ranks much like in League of Legends. Riot is also adding a way for players to challenge their friends, with players' League of Legends friends lists being carried over.
Finally, Riot details some of its early monetization plans. As previously announced, Riot won't be offering premium, randomized card packs like other free-to-play card games. Instead, Riot will offer a variety of ways to personalize the Legends of Runeterra experience. To start, Riot will sell premium Guardians, which are little cute creatures that stand on the board, thematic boards, and emotes for communication mid-match.
Riot Games does also briefly mention its plans for Legends of Runeterra's first 12 months post-open beta launch. Plans include introducing new sets that each add a new "region" to the game. Each set will also add new champions to the other regions in the game. Decks in Legends of Runeterra can mix and match regional sets, but can only have 6 champions, so each new region should dramatically change the game's meta. Riot's not giving away all of its secrets, though. Players will have to wait to see what's in store for Legends of Runeterra's future.
Legends of Runeterra is planned to launch in the first half of 2020 for PC and mobile devices.