It doesn’t matter how many guides you read or how prepared you think you are, when you’re staring down a lane in Summoner’s Rift all you have are your wits. Still, just how many are rattling round our captains’ heads as we enter episode three of the League of Legends: Wild Rift challenge... Well, you’ll have to find out for yourself.
PC Gamer’s honour lies in the hands of Simon Miller, who has put together a team to take on Alysia Judge and GamesRadar+ across a best-of-3 battle for glory. As you’ll see from the sweat on our captains’ brows, League of Legends: Wild Rift is bringing the classic MOBA to mobile and packs heart-pounding action into a map designed for short and dynamic clashes.
Simon has chosen Garen from a selection of 45 champions—drawn to the tank’s jacked biceps and lethal spin. Simon’s assembled a powerful squad with pals Brett Phipps (Master Yi) and Tom Ransom (Singed), and together their plan is to take turrets by sheer force. In Simon’s own words, “I only hang out with people who want to crush things. It’s a weird habit of mine.”
Alysia has chosen her team based on smarts, in a bid to be the David to Simon’s mighty Goliath. She’s playing Ahri, who is a slightly trickier choice for someone who’s new to Runeterra, but a potentially deadly force in the lanes thanks to her quick spirit rushes and powerful charm. Backed up by tank expert Shay, and pal George’s sharp ADC knowledge, will her strategy pay off?
Both teams are supported by two AI champions to even things out, and will battle using Wild Rift’s in Summoner Rift with intuitive on screen controls. A virtual controller, target lock and quick-press buttons make maneuvering a breeze in the same high-stakes League of Legends gameplay you’ll be used to from the PC version. If you’re a newbie like our captains though, there’s a slew of in-depth tutorials to get you up to speed on everything from the basics of destroying the Nexus, to the intricacies of the Jungle.
Will their training pay off? Will anyone slay Baron Nashor? And who will ultimately wear the League of Legends Wild Rift Crown? We have so many questions, and the only way to start answering them is to watch episode three, which is available now.
Don’t forget, you can play League of Legends: Wild Rift right now for yourself through the European Open Beta. Just head to your iOS or Android app store.
**Spoilers for who won follow**
Ok, so if you’re reading this, you’ll know who ultimately lifted the trophy. Alysia captained the GamesRadar+ team to victory, which is as much a surprise to her as to you reading this considering the team’s main tactic was “try not to die.”
Saying that, they had a few other tricks up their sleeves too. They made sure to have a balanced team with a strong magic damage dealer assassin going down the mid lane, a tank for the baron lane, and an ADC character on the dragon lane. George and Shay shook up their champions between games so PC Gamer wouldn’t learn their tricks, and they steadily chipped away at turrets without being distracted by skirmishes elsewhere. But really, their main strategy of “whale on Simon” probably cinched it.
Catch up with the action so far in parts one and two.
