LoL Mythic Variants: Riot Tries To Justify Their New Gacha System

Riot is trying to introduce new Mythic Variant skins to League of Legends, but the community is not on board with this new plan for 'super exclusive' content.

Mythic Variant header
LoL: Riot wants to add new Mythic Variants for exclusivity. | © Riot Games

Riot just revealed their plans for brand-new exclusive content in League of Legends and they're calling it Mythic Variants. These new skins don't seem to hit the mark though, with the LoL community more upset than ever before with how Riot is trying to get these skins to them.

In a blog post, the Riot skins and monetization team revealed their plans for Mythic Variants and what they're testing out in the coming months. What does Riot have planned for these new exclusive skins and why is the community so upset?

LoL Mythic Variants: Riot Introduces Gacha To League of Legends

When the new Dark Cosmic Erasure Jhin skin was first introduced many fans thought this would be a mythic chroma for the original Dark Cosmic Jhin skin, only to find out a day later that this is actually a brand-new skin... and that it would be part of a brand-new gacha-system Riot is going to introduce.

Of course, this was all speculation at first, but thanks to the newest blog post on the official League of Legends website, it was quickly confirmed that yes, this skin would only be available through gacha.

Now, what is a gacha game? A gacha game is a game that incorporates a monetized virtual capsule-toy vending machine mechanism, allowing players to spend in-game currency (often purchasable with real money) to obtain random virtual items or characters.

So, how will Riot actually introduce this new gacha system? Well, according to the blog post, they will release Cosmic 2023 Capsules. Each capsule has a 1% chance of containing the Dark Cosmic Erasure Jhin skin. If someone purchases 30 and opens them all, then on the 30th opening the person is guaranteed to receive the skin. Genshin Impact is calling, they want their pity system back, eh?

When calculating how much money someone would have to spend, if they truly needed all 30 capsules, they would end up at around $200. That's just insane for a cosmetic!

Why Is Riot Taking This Route?

Dark Cosmic Jhin 2023
Does this skin truly deserve $200? | © Riot Games

In the blog post, it was explained that Riot wants to add more exclusive and rare content to the game. Unfortunately, Prestige skins aren't as rare or exclusive anymore, hence why Riot is looking to add in these new Mythic Variants to truly spice things up.

We want to find other ways to offer exclusive items that feel really special to own. We’re starting this experiment by taking existing Legendary skins and taking a new stab at them and the fantasy they bring to the champion.

So, instead of just making mythic chromas which anyone can buy, they want to offer a new exciting skin for a champion that will be very exclusive, since the skins also won't be added to the re-roll pool for a long time.

After the moment is over and the Capsules are gone, the skin will be held from the reroll pool for now. We’ll add him into the reroll pool sometime in 2024 [...] For now, this is how we’re going to be introducing these and they will not be purchasable directly in the shop.

The community has not reacted well to this news and have even tagged some Rioters on social media to try and get a response. It seems that there is a disconnect between the company and the players, so there might be some changes ahead.

It has been confirmed that the people working on the Mythic Variant's are in talks to see whether there will be any change, though the community is doubtful, since suggestions and improvements for the ultimate Soul Fighter Samira skin were also ignored.

Sabrina Ahn

Sabrina Ahn is the League of Legends and Riftfeed Lead. During her time at Concordia University in 2014 she fell in love with LoL and is playing it since – how she hasn't lost her sanity is still unclear....