Riot Games censors emoji of a new Skin

One of the advertising images of the upcoming League of Legends skins has been edited by Riot Games. This is due to a small number of emoticons that may be problematic in some countries.

As usual, new skins will be released with the next League of Legends patch. We are in a rather special time of the year, so Valentine’s Day had to be the theme. The holiday is also celebrated in the video game with themed cosmetics that highlight sentimental relationships. For this occasion, Vi and Caitlyn have been chosen. In the promotion, they each receive a new look that is promoted together.

They are all promoted with a new look that will be given to each of them. The problem is that the company has been forced to censor these images. Although this is not very new, it is surprising in this case.

Censorship of an innocent emoji by Riot Games

In the “splash art” of the appearances, the two characters are shown having what appears to be a crush. Riot Games used it to explore the dynamic between the two champions.

With the game’s official narrative and in-game interactions, Caitlyn and Vi had already hinted that they were more than just friends. This was made evident during the Arcane relay, although it was not openly stated. However, three emoticons could cause an international stir. The emoji of a heart, an arrow, and a cupcake have been a cause of dispute, as silly as it may seem.

Looking at the PBE, the community noticed this problem. The advertising images of the skins can be seen on the loading screen and in several areas of the game. They complained after seeing only the edited version, which did not match what Riot Games had announced through official League of Legends communication channels. Fortunately, the developer’s staff reacted quickly.

“Thank you for commenting. The original version (with emoji) was intended for most regions, and this has not changed. However, as there are no regional versions of the PBE (test server) as there are for the final game, we have introduced only this altered edition to be on the safe side. However, this will not be the case when the patch is released unless you play on one of those servers that require a censored version of the game.”

The censored version of the splash art

Censorship in League of Legends

Censorship has always existed in the past of League of Legends. However, in the beginning, the causes were a little less worrisome. Karthus, for example, looked different on Chinese servers because skulls can be problematic there.

Something similar happened recently with the Savage Rift, where Thresh’s model was altered entirely to avoid raising the suggested minimum age to enjoy the game. Also, in some parts of Asia, any hint of violence tends to disappear from advertising illustrations.

Interpersonal relationships

The problems have worsened recently. Now we’re not just talking about removing violence or altering the appearance of characters; the focus is on removing any hint of interpersonal connections that deviate from heterosexual norms. Riot Games considers this a necessary evil.

The corporation argues that even if it is not clearly stated, the story is still available to players who wish to discover it. In addition, there are countries where it is illegal to engage in what the law deems the “promotion of homosexuality.”

There are divergent views on Riot Games’ decision. While some League of Legends players disagrees with this censorship effort, others think it is beneficial, if necessary, to keep League of Legends published in other nations. Beyond individual viewpoints, the censorship exercise is pointless. Instantly, players worldwide learned that K’Sante was gay and had a boyfriend. The same happened with Diana and Leona, whose relationship was deleted in China only for players to reveal it on the Weibo social network.

Header: Riot Games