To welcome in the new League of Legends season, Riot Games has dropped a new cinematic for fans to get excited for the upcoming grind in 2023. The video is just over two minutes, but viewers quickly realized that the quotes being said on screen sounded very familiar, from the source to the voice reciting them.
The video kicked off with a new instrumental produced by popular composer team 2WEI, but instead of lyrics, something a bit different was read out loud on top of the music. Mia Sinclair Jenness, who is the voice of young Powder in Riot’s hit Netflix series Arcane, is featured as the reader, with quotes from multiple champions serving as the content.
Starting off with a quote from Xerath, Jenness reads the quotes like a poem. The individual lines were sewn together to create a believable and working storyline where the main character presses forward through adversity in order to become the victor of whatever battle they are facing. Zed, Thresh, Kha’Zix, Katarina, Sejuani, Pantheon, and Wukong are all tapped into for the poem.
While this poem is recited, the video sweeps through the Summoner’s Rift, which has been rendered into a 3D form with weapons scattered around from different champions in the game. It is an impressive piece of art from the team at Riot, but fans and supporters are less than enthusiastic about the release, considering the seasonal introductions of the past.
The video references specific moments in esports—like Faker’s iconic Zed outplay—through audio clips from the casters, but other than that, there isn’t much substance. As a result, a majority of the League community sits in disappointment, while a select few hold out hope that this was simply a teaser for the real animated video that will release at a later date.
Whether you’re skeptical or hopeful, one thing is certain: the 2023 season has begun and the mountain is ready to be climbed again.
