Moonton has recently revealed their plans regarding their Esports by taking a leaf out of Riot’s book itself with the announcement of introducing franchised leagues in Mobile Legends. However, when inquired about Riot’s plans for franchised models in Wild Rift, they have disclosed that they had no plans yet. This is despite the fact that Wild Rift’s PC counterpart League of Legends has been one of the biggest franchising successes in the past few years. As a part of their announcement, Riot Games points out that Wild Rift is focusing on building an Esports ecosystem foundation, which is independent of their PC counterpart of League of Legends.
An independent ecosystem for Wild Rift
In a blog post by Wild Rift devs, Leo Faria, the head of Wild Rift Esports has recently announced their plans for the future of Wild Rift competitive plays by saying that Riot wanted to build an ecosystem that was self-sustaining and independent from Wild Rift’s PC counterpart.
Additionally, they wanted to make sure that Wild Rift Esports is independent and not just a gateway to LoL Esports. Riot is particularly focused on investing in the Western Regions like the Americas, Europe, and the Middle East.
Their goal is to move fast and aggressively especially in regions like China and South East Asia where mobile Esports is predominant. Riot aims to make Wild Rift the first truly global mobile Esports platform, to make sure Wild Rift breaks into all corners of the globe.
They believe that inspiring fans to play the game is the most important aspect of building the Esports foundation. “Going where the players are” is what the world of global mobile esports is all about. Leo Faria made heavy emphasis on building a stable Esports foundation where Esports organizations can continue to thrive successfully, committing to build strong teams.
Riot plans to build an independent Esports ecosystem with no plans for the franchised models yet. This is despite the fact that the League of Legends European Championship has been such a booming success with franchised leagues. Teams like G2Esports and Fnatic have performed at the highest stages of international gaming during LEC, showing the strength and consistency the league has reached since it had first begun franchising.
However, when inquired about building franchised leagues, Justin Hulong, Riot Games’ SEA and Taiwan GM has said, “We won’t rule out franchises. Franchising is definitely one path, but first, we need to make sure that our ecosystem foundation is strong, then we will be in a position to assess whether franchises make sense” in an interview with Yahoo! News.
Conclusion
Wild Rift has grown immensely since the announcement of the game back in 2019. With over 32 million downloads, the fire for competition has definitely increased. It has rapidly grown due to its engaging and fast-paced gameplay, making it both exciting to play and to watch. Due to this, the demand for Wild Rift Esports has grown stronger.
Riot Games have a strong commitment to making sure a strong mobile Esports foundation can be built for Wild Rift. However, franchising takes a lot of dedication, investment, and hard work. It may not be a sustainable model of Wild Rift as of yet, since the transition to a franchised league does not always go smoothly. Regardless, Riot Games is hopeful for the future of Wild Rift Esports and hopes to make it as successful as its PC counterpart League of Legends, if not more.
What are your thoughts on Wild Rift creating an independent ecosystem foundation? Let us know in the comments below.
For more Mobile Gaming news and updates, join our WhatsApp group, Telegram Group, or Discord server. Also, follow us on Google News, Instagram, and Twitter for quick updates.
