• Riot Games adds Teamfight Tactics, a brand new mode for LoL
• The game is tactics-based and with automated fights
• New furry mascots are arriving to League of Legends

Riot Games is introducing a Dota Auto Chess-inspired game mode by the name of Teamfight Tactics. Once again, players will be asked to put together the strongest team composition to win the fight.

Teamfight Tactics Arrives for Riot’s League of Legends

MOBA games are known to copy from one another and Riot Games‘ League of Legends is no exception. The company has revealed that it will release a new game mode for its flagship title under the name of “Teamfight Tactics” (TFT).

The mode is inspired by Dota 2’s Dota Auto Chess which has been boosting the game’s popularity and helping players convert into Dota 2 players over the past few months. As to Teamfight Tactics, the mode will be based on a hex grid and asks of players to come up with intricate team compositions.

As to the actual fighting, it’s all automated, with players having time to build their armies and then let them clash in mid-field. Riot didn’t hide the source of their inspiration either, and the official announcement of the game mode came with an open admiration for Dota’s own innovativeness.

“We’ve always loved strategy games, and recently we’ve gotten into the new auto-battler genre—folks around the office have been playing an insane amount of Dota Auto Chess in particular. We love it, and it actually got us inspired to create something new as a mode in League.”

A closer look at Dota’s Auto Chess, though, would reveal that the game strikes more as a version of mahjong rather than the classic chess game as you understand it. Yet, the modification pioneered by Drodo Studio has been a huge hit since it was introduced in January.

In a sense, the mode is a throwback to a time when Warcraft III maps were modified to create new games altogether to the point where Dota was born. Since its release date, Dota Auto Chess has hit 300 concurrent players and now has 4.13 million subscribers to its name.

The modification has been a far better arrival to the Valve-powered Dota 2 platform than the botched card game attempt with “Artifact,” a game far too complicated to appeal to the larger crowd.

TFT seems to be a nice power-up from Dota Auto Chess, introducing a more pleasantly animated terrain and possibly a slightly altered gameplay that would land the game a distinct feel from Dota’s own variation.

Enter the Little Legends

As if TFT hasn’t had you sold already, but League of Legends is adding new avatars that will be called “Little Legends” and will be granted for free at first. However, to pick a different species of critter, you will need to pay up 750 RP. There are all sorts of cute little mascots to pick from and Riot Games know how to leverage people’s natural affinity for small balls of furry fluff.