Riot have appointed Andrei Van Roon as head of League Studios, which is responsible for the wildly popular MOBA League of Legends.
In his new role, Van Roon will oversee the development of the studio’s catalog of fames, including Teamfight Tactics, League of Legends, and League of Legends: Wild Rift, reporting to Riot president and co-founder Marc Merrill.
Van Roon has been with Riot for over a decade, and during his time with the company has worked in a variety of roles, primarily on League of Legends, for which he has acted as its champion designer, gameplay lead, design director, and game director.
“I’m really excited to take on this role and very grateful to Riot for the opportunity. I’ve been a huge fan of League from closed beta onwards and have loved all the different ways I’ve had a chance to contribute to the game,” said Van Roon.
Wild Success
League of Legends: Wild Rift recently celebrated a milestone $750 million in lifetime revenue. The mobile title – a spin-off of League of Legends – was first launched in October 2020, making this achievement – hitting this milestone in under two years – even more staggering.
The game was the second highest-grossing mobile title of the first half of 2022, behind only Arena of Valor.
The game has proved particularly strong in China, where it was released in October 2021. Data.ai reports that global player spending for the game increased sevenfold when League of Legends: Wild Rift was first released in the country. This speaks to the remarkable strength of the Chinese gaming industry, particularly on mobile platforms.
We listed Riot Games as number 5 on this year’s list of the top 50 mobile game makers, singling out Wild Rift as a particular factor in its selection.
