The official launch of Legends of Runeterra has arrived

When Riot Games announced Legends of Runeterra half a year ago, everyone was wondering if it would be able to compete with the other games in the highly-populated genre of the collectible card video games. Hearthstone, Magic the Gathering, Gwent, Faeria, The Elder Scrolls: Legends... The list of games available is quite long and even if Legends of Runeterra is based on the lore and characters of League of Legends, it wasn't a guaranty of success. You just have to take a look at Artifact, which takes inspiration from DOTA 2 and is now being reworked because it failed to attract the players.

Fortunately, that doesn't seem to be the case of Legends of Runeterra. Riot Games has nailed it when it comes to the gameplay and the game offers a refreshing take at the genre. A few months of open beta testing have also served to polish the progression system and balance some of the cards and obtaining a final product whose official launch has just happened.

The release of Legends of Runeterra comes accompanied by a brand new set of 120+ cards that includes a new region in the game. Bilgewater, land of pirates and buccaneers will be familiar to League of Legends players that play with characters like Miss Fortune, Fizz or Gangplank. It's cards introduce new gameplay mechanics and keywords that are related to pirates and their ways. These are focused on attacking fast, emptying your deck to empower your attacks, and reaping juicy rewards from hitting the enemy nexus.

In the treacherous harbor of Bilgewater, locals live and die by one code: take whatever you can. Pirate gangs never pass up a chance to plunder, swindlers and rogues keep the next big score in their sights, and monsters of the deep devour entire ships without warning. Bilgewater joins LoR’s cast of regions for even more deckbuilding possibilities, and brings a slew of options to take enemies by surprise and shoot holes in their plans. You win by bombarding your opponent with attacks they just can’t deal with, and when it’s time to sink or swim, you’ll have all the firepower you need to pull it off.

Whether you just want to have some fun playing a card game based on your favorite League of Legends characters or you want to put your deckbuilding skills to test on ranked mode, Legends of Runeterra is a great choice. To play it for free you just have to download it on your PC or mobile.