The 2022 preseason went live this week, bringing a long list of major changes to the League of Legends experience on Summoner’s Rift. And players are upset about one change in particular.
The most noticeable changes are the new dragons, Hextech and Chemtech. Each of them brings unique effects to Summoner’s Rift when they take over. While the Hextech drake’s portals got all of the initial attention, Chemtech drake’s camouflaging fields of smoke have rapidly drawn criticism from players and fans. But what is it about this new twist to League of Legends gameplay that’s enraging fans?
When the Chemtech dragon takes over the rift, it creates two zones of smog in the jungle behind both major objectives. The Chemtech field has a few effects: firstly, players outside of the zone cannot see into it, but players within the zone can see out. In addition, normal wards won’t spot champions inside the elemental effect, and champions are camouflaged after just a few seconds in the zone. This is meant to create high-tension moments where entering the dark smog requires coordination and teamwork. Instead, it’s turned these sections of the map into death traps where all of the usual tools players have gotten used to for gaining vision are rendered nearly useless. Fans were immediately taking to social media to let their unhappiness be heard.
The other criticism being levelled at Chemtech drake is its situational usefulness, given that it only gives a benefit when an opponent has a flat amount of greater health than you do. This can lead to situations where tanks, who have already been getting pushed to the side, gain zero benefit from the Chemtech dragon when fighting against squishier targets.
Between a highly situational dragon reward and the introduction of more unwanted stealth and camouflage to League of Legends, there’s some pretty clear reasons why fans aren’t enjoying their games with the Chemtech dragon.
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