The Riot MMO is not cancelled. Even amidst the recent job layoffs by Riot Games, the Riot MMO is not cancelled. On January 22, 2024, Riot Games said, “Plus we have a number of projects cooking in various stages of R&D (research and development)”
Therefore, the Riot MMO is not being cancelled. Furthermore, there has not been an official statement regarding a cancellation. So, any discussion suggesting the Riot MMO is being cancelled is not factual.
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Is the Riot MMO Cancelled After the 2024 Layoff
Unfortunately, on January 22, 2024 Riot Games publicly stated they laid off roughly 530 jobs globally, which accounted for approximately 11% of their staff.
Rest assured, the majority of the job cuts were to departments outside of core development. Additionally, we discovered Riot Forge was shut down and Legends of Runeterra will go undergoing a downsize.
This has a definite impact on Riot Games culture and was a tragedy to many Rioters and their families. Riot Games’ vision has shifting to double down on their core live games, which include League of Legends, VALORANT, Teamfight Tactics, and Wild Rift. On top of their main games, the research and development department will still be alive and well. The research and development department includes, the Riot MMO, Project F, Project T, and Project L.
Plus we have a number of projects cooking in various stages of R&D
Riot Games
Lastly, in the Message to Rioters email regarding the layoffs, the statement included brief details about how the changes to their portfolio (the games). Among the aforementioned core live games, was exploration into R&D.
Let me start by saying we’re as committed as ever to League PC, VALORANT, TFT, Wild Rift, and to exploration in R&D. In some cases, we’re reshaping our portfolio and teams to develop these games more effectively, but you can expect these to be areas where we continue to invest.
Riot Games
President of Riot Games Wants an MMO
Now that you’re up to date, let’s start from the beginning. Marc Merrill said in 2019 he would love to make an MMO. Perhaps, it wouldn’t be anytime soon. But that is because they would want to do the genre justice. And of course, developing an MMO is no small task. He’d like to develop an in-house development team with the brightest minds. Now, here we are years later and everything Marc said is playing out. Understand that observing the president of Riot Games’ sentiment is a good starting point. If Marc communicated that he was not keen on making an MMO but did anyways, that would be concerning. So far, the Riot MMO is not cancelled.
The Riot MMO Team is Actively Hiring
For the most part, the unpublished Riot MMO team has been hiring. So far, the MMO has much of its developmental backbone on staff. For example
- Executive Producer
- Game Designer
- Art Director
- Director of Content Production
Once most of the high level positions have been filled, they will presumably hire more managers and engineers. Fortunately, that is the position this game is at now. The Riot MMO team has been expanding. They’ve recently hired their principal QA manager, a writer, artist, and animator too!
The game is just being built. The direction of the game is probably still in flux. Any suggestions that ‘Riot MMO cancelled’, are untrue.
Former Executive Producer Said They’d be Quiet
It is possible critics may suggest the game will be cancelled due to the lack of communication. Nonetheless, it is important to remember, ex Executive Producer, Greg Street forewarned us of about the lack of dialogue. Specifically, he said the team might be quiet for a while until they determine the direction of the game.
Was the Riot MMO Cancelled After Greg Left?
Unfortunately, the original Executive Producer of the Riot MMO, Greg Street publicly announced he left Riot Games on March 7, 2023. Naturally, his departure raised questions whether the Riot MMO was cancelled. Firstly, Greg left due to the loss of close family members. Greg said he relocated in order to be closer to his surviving family. As far as questions raised, it was primarily, is the League MMO cancelled? Fortunately, Greg and the co-founder of Riot Games reassured us that development is still in full swing. Moreover, the team is stacked with an impressive roster of developers. Furthermore, everyone on the team is happy with the direction of the game.
Employee Reshuffling
The question is Riot MMO Cancelled arose again on Mar 23, 2023. On that day, several profile description of Riot MMO employees change. For example, Katia Bourykina’s profile changed from MMO to R&D. Also, Chaemirix tweeted she has been transferred from the Riot MMO to TFT for one year.
Not only that, around February, 2023 Camille Sanford mentioned in a tweet she jumped over to help R&D for roughly 7 months. During that time, Camille helped out with level design, encounters, environment, and world building. According to Camille Sanford, she returned to her ‘home’ project, MMO as of September 11, 2023.
In the end, it appears this was simply corporate reshuffling. Importantly, the former principal game designer, Riot Xenogenic was casting some Riot MMO related polls only a few days prior. As well, directors, (Mark Yetter, and Riot Exis etc.) designers, and engineers still have their MMO moniker in their Twitter bio.
The Riot MMO is Not Cancelled
Hopefully we given you assurance that the Riot MMO is not cancelled. They are just getting starting. Soon, we imagine a plethora of animators, artists, narrators, and more will be hard at work building this game. Keep an eye for Riot’s News web page. According to former executive producer Greg Street, when the MMO team is ready to give its comprehensive update, it might share a similar format Project L had.
