It looks like our good friends in Bronze V will have a lower rank to demote to soon. Riot Games is introducing two new ranked tiers for League of Legends in 2019, Iron and Grandmaster.
/dev diary: New Tiers & Placements in Ranked 2019.https://t.co/oDpz84tE5Y
— League of Legends (@LeagueOfLegends) September 19, 2018
Iron and Grandmaster Ranks!
Earlier in the year, Riot would announce the addition of two new rank tiers, but would not specify what these ranks were. Iron will be a rank below Bronze, while Grandmaster will be a rank tier between Diamond and Master. They would also announce the compression of each rank from five divisions to four. They would state that it’ll “help us smooth out the bad experiences in Bronze, Silver, and Diamond”, while also bringing “more differentiation for Diamond players, which is something that has been a problem for a while now.”
There has always been a problem between people in the Diamond tier, so much so that it has become a meme. Many Twitch chats are constantly filling with spam saying Diamond V like it’s a joke. By adding another division between diamond and master, players will now be placed in a skill group that they truly belong to. True Diamond players will have a harder time reaching Grandmaster. Meanwhile, a Grandmaster will have a better time reaching Master. Additionally, adding more rank tiers and fewer divisions, it will allow players to easily promote to higher ranks. The pain of having to go through multiple promotional series is now less.
More additions, more rivalries!
Riot is also adding a new feature to the ranking system for League of Legends. At the upper echelons of the leaderboards, many people will begin to face the same players. To capitalize on this, Riot will be telling you who’s spot you will be taking when you rank up. At the same time, they will also be telling you who will be taking your spot when you lose. This should create some great rivalries between some of the best players in the world. Streamers could also create some entertaining content, calling out other players and streamers in the ladder.
Gold ADC, Diamond Midlaner?
Also, if you missed it, Riot is adding positional matchmaking to the ranking systems for 2019. This means that the matchmaking system will now link you to matchups based on your skill in the position you’re playing. For example, if you are an ADC main and play the role well, you could be placing in Diamond. However, if you end up trying out jungle and you suck at it, you’ll be placing in Gold.
However, when you start reaching the higher ranks of the ladder, will that affect your ranking? Not exactly, says Riot Sapmagic. He states:
As your ranks rise, the behind-the-scenes tethers that link your positions grow shorter and shorter. By the time you reach the top of the ladder, your MMRs are tightly-linked. Once you promote into Master, your position ranks collapse into a single rank much like today. We believe this is the right approach because the kinds of skills that get you to Challenger, like top-tier macro, expert vision control, and high mechanical execution, are often transferable between positions. It’s not universally true for every skill, but if you’re truly great at League, it’s hard to keep you down.
In short, if you are good at the game, the universal skills that make you good at most roles should be at a high level. All in all, the changes Riot is making to League of Legends seems great, and should bring some excitement for the upcoming year.
What do you think of Riot’s new additions to Ranked for 2019? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! If you want more League of Legends news, check us out here!
