The Strategic Depth of League of Legends and How It Stacks Up Against Other Games

League of Legends is rarely categorized as a strategy game, but perhaps it should be. Players certainly need to have some skills in this area and the best players are inevitably always one step ahead of the competition as they have their refined tactics to try to get to the top. It’s one of the most-played esports competitions and in pro gaming, there is a lot to be said for reaching the very top of the field. Players spend hundreds or even thousands of hours working on their skills.

The Basics of Strategy in LoL

League of Legends is a team-based game with five players on each side, each picking a unique champion from a huge roster. The ultimate goal? Destroy the enemy’s Nexus. This is essentially the heart of their base.

Getting there, however, is anything but simple. It’s a game where both individual skill and team coordination (and working together) are crucial. Champions must manage the lanes within the game plus secure objectives like dragons and barons. They also need to push down towers, all while denying the enemy the opportunity to do the same and reach their base.

There’s a constant back-and-forth, a tug-of-war that makes every decision – every call to attack or retreat and every rotation from one lane to another — a potential game-changer. Unlike some games where strategies are static or predetermined, LoL thrives on fluidity. The meta (the dominant strategy) evolves with every patch, keeping players on their toes.

Judging the Upper Hand – LoL and Blackjack

Blackjack is another game where there is some level of strategy involved as people try to work out when they are in a strong position and when to carry on with their bet or when to simply bow out. The decision to stick or twist, or whether to “hit” in blackjack, is actually something seen in loads of different games in one form or another.

A comparison when playing live blackjack games is simply working out when a hand is strong and basing your betting decisions on this. For instance, do you hit on a 16 or is this going to be enough to win the hand against the dealer? In live blackjack, a player is connected to a dealer in real time and needs to make quick decisions about how to approach things and what their next move is. This is exactly the same in LoL and other esports. Quick thinking is often a valuable skill.

The comparison with LoL comes into the equation when we think about players working out whether they are in a strong position and choosing their strategy accordingly. Sometimes it is important to take a “hit” and try to strengthen that position before moving forward.

Strategy in Real-Time Strategy (RTS) Games

People see it as a bit more of an action-based game, but League of Legends has a lot in common with traditional Real-Time Strategy (RTS) games like Age of Empires. These games require players to balance micro and macro strategies and it is important to be able to manage individual units while keeping an eye on the bigger picture, like resource management and base-building. RTS games had something of a boom in the early 2000s and this is a similar timescale to the launch of LoL, which came shortly after and may have even been inspired by some of these games.

League and RTS games both have an emphasis on map control and tactical decision-making. However, RTS games often require more intense multitasking and real-time decision-making at a pace that can be overwhelming, plus players aren’t usually working as a team.

Where LoL diverges is in its focus on the individual player’s experience. RTS games are more about controlling a whole army, while in LoL, a player controls just one champion. This makes for a more intimate and hero-centric gameplay style. Every champion has its own set of abilities adding a layer of strategy that is both personal and team-oriented. The result? A game where knowledge of each character’s role and synergy with teammates is crucial.

Conclusion

LoL draws comparisons from a lot of different types of games but it varies from many action games and focuses on territory control and resource management throughout the entire match. It’s not about being the last one standing; it’s about outsmarting and outplaying the enemy teams and sometimes over a long stretch of time.

Each game has its own gameplay functionality, but there are reasons why LoL is watched by millions of different fans around the world. Big tournaments consistently sell out for in-person tickets, too. Something about the strategy combined with the action in this game has helped catapult it into one of the most popular games in the world of esports today.