League of Legends Developer Says Yuumi Wouldn't Ever Be Disabled in Pro Play
Despite calls from both fans and professional players alike, League of Legends developer Riot Games has said that it would essentially never look to disable the champion Yuumi when it comes to the game's esports scene. For many LoL fans that may have watched Worlds 2022 over the past month, it's clear that Yuumi is pretty loathed when it comes to pro play. Not only was the champion largely banned entirely at the year's biggest League of Legends tournament, but when it was played, it was met with an outpouring of jeers from fans. Even though Yuumi is arguably the most hated champion in the game, those at Riot have no intent to ever disable the character permanently for pros.
In a recent conversation with ComicBook.com, League of Legends lead designer Matthew Leung-Harrison opened up about Yuumi and the visceral reactions that fans and players have to the champion. While Yuumi is a character that was made with beginner players in mind, some tools in its kit have made it a nuisance to deal with in a professional setting. Still, this doesn't make those at Riot feel like the champion should ever be taken out of the competitive scene.
"I mean, almost certainly not. We wouldn't make a separate set of rules like, 'Oh, Yuumi is disabled in pro play,'" Leung-Harrison said in response to being asked about a situation where Yuumi is barred from LoL esports. "The motivations for players playing Yuumi are almost strictly opposite to the motivations for pro players. At least on paper, when players observe her, they're like, 'Oh, she's not doing anything. She's just standing on a champion and doing nothing.' But actually, we observe Yuumi to have a pretty significant mastery curve. She's actually quite difficult to play, especially at the highest level with all the hopping around and the Qs and knowing when to R and when to pop out to ward. So yeah, it's understandable that pro players want Yuumi to be removed because honestly, she doesn't address any of the things that pro players would want out of playing League. But she is very helpful for new players."
Although this statement from Leung-Harrison isn't a surprising one, it's surely disappointing news to some. Although it seemed unlikely that Riot would ever look to make a different ruleset for League of Legends when it comes to esports, the fact that Yuumi is so widely loathed for a variety of reasons made it seem like something the studio could entertain. Instead, fans and pro players will now just have to hope that Yuumi gets greatly nerfed so that she doesn't end up appearing in competitive games.
Do you wish that Riot would ban Yuumi from League of Legends professional play? Or are you someone who actually likes to watch the champion being played by pros? Let me know either down in the comments or shoot me a message on Twitter at @MooreMan12.