LoL meets Vampire Survivor in new game mode coming soon

Forget Invasion and Extraction, a new PvE game mode is coming to League.

Star Guardian celebrating a victory after defeating Vel' Koz
In Star Guardian Invasion players had to pass several levels before going up against the big Eye of the Void

This year, not even the warm weather might draw League of Legends players out of their den as Riot Games announced the arrival of a PvE game mode. After years of starvation since the last PvE event, high expectations are placed on the upcoming game mode.

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In the latest Dev Update video, the League team shared news on the development of a new PvE game mode, which is coming for the 2024 Summer event. The game mode will be a “bullet heaven survivor” and is expected to provide a gameplay experience similar to the popular Vampire Survivor game, with players taking on waves of enemies in a battle scenario.

Star Guardian Invastion had players go against void-like creatures to save the world.
In 2017 League players fought off the Invasion with the Star Guardian and the world was never the same after. Screenshot by Dot Esports.

Following the footsteps of previous successful PvE events, such as the Star Guardian Invasion and Odyssey: Extraction events, the upcoming game mode might be linked to a new skin line. This would also fit with the tradition of introducing a new universe during the Summer event, like it was for Soul Fighter in 2023, Sentinel of Light in 2021, and Spirit Blossom in 2020.

But while details about the upcoming PvE mode remain limited, speculations around which skin line could make a comeback, like Star Guardian did in Summer ’22, have already begun. A possible theme could be Arcade, which last saw a new champion skin added to its ranks in 2022 when Bel’Veth was released. The colorful and nostalgic aesthetic of the Arcade universe would complement the Bullet Heaven survivor concept, offering players an engaging experience—and, quite frankly, a banger soundtrack for the game mode. 

Bel'Veth's Battle Boss skin, with the champion looming over a team on a small rock in League of Legends.
Battle Boss Bel’Veth terrorized the Rift just a little over two years ago. Image via Riot Games

Another speculation could be made around Pool Party or Odyssey, both with very fun thematic to explore. But a simple and highly demanded theme for the event could be constructed around the Void, which has also given new form to the Summoners Rift at the beginning of the year.

The Summer event of the past few years kicked off the first or second week of July, and League players can expect this new PvE game mode to land on the client around the same time this year too. 

Author
Image of Cecilia Ciocchetti
Cecilia Ciocchetti
Freelance writer mainly focusing on the League of Legends and VALORANT esports scenes. Sometimes at events interviewing professionals of the scene, from players to the talented people working behind the curtains. You can reach out to me via Twitter.