Mourning the Fallen Game-Type

Zac Cameron,

February 23, 2018 2:15 AM

It's been two years since League of Legends lost its dominion game mode

When League of Legends first launched, it was kind of barebones. Only a handful of champions, one map to play on, and you could only really play ranked, or normal. Eventually we would get new maps and game modes, like Twisted Treeline, a map designed for 3v3 combat, rather than the 5v5 of Summoners Rift, and we would also get rotating game modes, like All for One, or the ever popular URF mode. But along the way, we gained, and lost, a map and game type that was very unique for its time.

Dominion

A game mode that was very different from everything we had seen so far, a map that was extremely different to what we were used to, and a style of play that was wholly unique. Dominion was Riot’s answer to players wanting a faster, more action packed game to play, one that rewarded good team synergy and punished players who refused to recognise that League of Legends was a team game.

With its capture and hold mechanic, Dominion was a breath of fresh air to players (leagueoflegends.com)
With its capture and hold mechanic, Dominion was a breath of fresh air to players (leagueoflegends.com)

Dominion had a separate queue for players, and became a fairly popular choice for players who wanted to play a game of LoL, but didn’t want to commit to a match that could potentially go for quite some time. Though it was never the most populated game type, it was always around for players who just wanted something a little different.

Unfortunately for Riot, the fact that Dominion did not have a large player-base was the reason they had to scrap it. As explained in a post on their website, Dominion was played by less than 0.5% of the player’s base near the end, and though it had a vocal fan base, that was simply not enough to justify keeping the servers running full time. Riot would go on to introduce a wide variety of rotating game types, but were unwilling to commit to keeping the light switched on for Dominion.

In honour of the passing of the game mode, here is game one of the final Dominion tournament held, a match that showcased exactly why fans were so fond of the game to begin with. While the game looked all said and done for Stuck In Q, they were able to make a last ditch effort to stave of defeat, and in turn make one of the most incredible comebacks in Dominion history.

If you’re looking for more action revolving around the League of Legends scene in North America, check out our Power Rankings After Week 5, or to see when and who your favourite NA LCS Teams are playing next, check out the official standings page here.



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