The New PvE mode is LoL’s take on bullet-heaven, survivor-like that can be played solo or co-op.
Riot Games, the developer of League of Legends has cooked up something huge this Summer for its players.
Making a comeback since its 2022 debut, Swarm Operations | Anima Squad transforms beloved LoL champions into cybernetic, animal-themed warriors who unite to fend off the apocalyptic threat of the abyssal Primordians.
Aside from new skins and lore to dive into this alternate universe, LoL is also releasing a PvE mode that can be played co-op or solo.
"At the start of the year, we talked about creating fun, new ways to enjoy 'League of Legends,' and we're really excited to introduce Swarm to players during this summer's Anima Squad event," said Game Director Pu Liu in a press release on Friday (21 June).
“We're very proud of the team's work, and hope that Swarm will bring players a lot of laughs and fun times with friends old and new.”
What's happening in the world of Anima Squad?
In Anima Squad, your favourite champions are reimagined as superpowered warriors who united against the civilization-ending invasion of the abyssal Primordians.
Following the Primordian threat that pushed civilisation to the brink, tribes of survivors hid in the darkness, resigned to annihilation. However, out of these ashes, Final City was born.
Now, with re-engineered Primordian technology, Final City’s elite taskforce of superpowered warriors stands as the dawn of a new human resistance, fighting for organic life.
Continuing the lore from the 2022 AnimaTech skin line featuring Miss Fortune, Jinx, Riven, Sylas, and Vayne, the Anima Squad is back with more of your favourite LoL champions, ready to defend humanity in this new chapter.
What is Swarm?
Swarm offers a fresh spin on bullet heaven and survivor-like gameplay, featuring Anima Squad renditions of your favourite champions. Think Vampire Survivors, but with a couple of twists that you might not find in other survivor games.
In this game mode, players navigate Final City, mowing down enemies, completing missions, and striving to survive as long as possible.
During the battle, players can unlock and upgrade weapons and new Anima Squad members to help defeat the swarming enemies and vary their strategy. As they level up, they also receive augments that add status effects to their champion.
And if they die early on, there’s no need to fret—at the end of each run, you get a chance to permanently upgrade your champion and help you get further in your next run.
Note that this game mode uses the WASD system, instead of League's usual keyboard and mouse controls.
Upgrades: Augments and Weapons
Just like other survivor-likes and rogue-likes, upgrades come in the form of augments, which show up as you level up on the map for your current run.
For Swarm, you get a choice of three augments, each offering different advantages to your character, like increasing your damage, your armour, and more.
The more exciting upgrades come in the form of weapons. There’s a variety of weapons in the game that can cause your champion to passively fire in certain directions, depending on which weapon.
For example, the UwU blaster will have your champion fire missiles at random targets, but Hollow Radiance will surround your character with an aura that will deal burn damage to nearby enemies within the aura’s radius.
Spires and Boss Fights: A twist to the survivor-like genre
Needless to say, Swarm isn’t a straightforward re-skin or copy of others in the same genre. For this game mode, the dev team added some Spires to spice up your run now and then.
The Miss Fortune spire, for example, will provide you with a temporary boost for a short period that can aid you in wiping out hoards of enemies.
Meanwhile, the Yuumi spire can present you and your teammates with a quest. If you succeed in that quest, you are rewarded with plenty of coins and some rare upgrades.
Finally, there’s the Primordial Spire, which presents a timed challenge to the players in the run, increasing the difficulty level of the current run by either adding more enemies or randomly shooting AoE damage across the map.
Aside from the spires, there will be boss fights with different boss mechanics per fight.
Rek'Sai, the introductory boss, features simpler patterns designed to help players clear her successfully. For instance, she creates burrows that must be destroyed before she can reach you. Success in destroying these burrows results in dealing significant damage to Rek'Sai.
Aatrox serves as the final boss on the ultimate map, presenting players with more intricate mechanics. One such challenge involves being chained to a pillar that must be destroyed. Failure to do so significantly increases the risk of death as Aatrox relentlessly hurls swords at you.
Aatrox also transitions into a final form, described by developers as a challenge that requires mastering the game mode to clear. It's a tough hurdle, pushing players to refine their skills and strategy to complete the whole game.
How does matchmaking work?
- Initially, players can start by forming a pre-made party of up to four members.
- Matchmaking is unlocked after completing all story-driven maps.
- Before entering the queue, players select their champion and preferred map from the unlocked options.
- Completing all story mode maps unlocks higher difficulty levels and additional content.
- The difficulty of matchmade games is designed for 4-player co-op.
Anima Squad Skins
Of course, along with a new campaign comes a lineup of skins players can collect. Here are the skins you can expect for this event:
- Battle Dove Seraphine, Primordian Aatrox (Legendary)
- Prestige Cyber Cat Yuumi, Prestige Battle Lion Leona (Prestige)
- Battle Bat Xayah, Battle Bear Illaoi, Battle Bunny Aurora, Battle Lion Leona, Battle Wolf Yasuo,
- Cyber Cat Yuumi, Primordian Bel'Veth, Primordian Briar, Primordian Rek'Sai
- Admiral Battle Bunny Miss Fortune (Mythic Variant)
Additional cosmetic content like exclusive chromas, borders, and emotes will be earnable through the Anima Squad Event Pass.
The Anima Squad event kicks off worldwide on Thursday, 17 July, and concludes on Monday, 19 August.