Left click, left click, left click. The sounds of Doritos crunching and empty Mountain Dew bottles hitting the floor. That is all you hear when the students of Atholton are playing League of Legends. League of Legends is becoming a worldwide phenomenon that the students of Atholton are loving.
“If you want to have a game to play with your friends, [League of Legends] is a good one to start to learn” said Lucas Baglione, a 9th grade member of the club here at Atholton. “It has a high learning curve, but once you get it, it’s a lot of fun.”
League of Legends is a third-person online videogame where players can play and interact with other players all around the world. The world-wide phenomenon stems from a previous game called Defense of the Ancients or DotA. In League of Legends, players play the role of a “summoner” that controls a “champion” with unique abilities and battle against other players.
League of Legends and eSports has grown in popularity and they have officially grown on Atholton. At Atholton, students meet up after school on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s and battle against other players online. League of Legends has a widespread audience all over the world and professional teams come together to compete in the League Championship Series.
eSports has begun to appeal to both the younger and older crowd. Ever since the multiplayer aspect of video games was introduced, more players have been able to enjoy videogames just a little more. The multiplayer aspect also allows players to interact and work together to achieve a common goal.
“For a lot of eSports tournaments, not just League,” said Baglione. “you can get millions of viewers at a time, easily.”
Unlike like most phone games, League of Legends isn’t a game that is easy to play and understand. It is a game that is necessary to play for a while and gradually, it will become a fun and competitive game as the player becomes more experienced.
“You have to learn. I know a lot of games like these, you have to be strategic about them.” said Nathan Smith, a sophomore member of the club.
When the club members first walk in the door, they find their computers, sit down, and start up the game. Once the game is loaded, they focus on the game so much, they block out everything around them and try to win. When the game is over they wipe their sweaty hands and start up another game.
When League of Legends was first released in 2009, it was very well received and was growing. By July of 2012, the game had become the most played PC game in North America and Europe in hours played.
With the widespread interest of League of Legends nationwide, Atholton plans on getting a team together to participate in The High School Starleague in the spring.
“Were still figuring out how we’re going to form up teams,” said Bryce Cramer, the supervisor of the club. “Whether we’re going to put a ‘Best of the Club’ team together or whether people just want to participate.”
With the number of eSports viewers increasing every day, many people aspire to go pro just like the people they watch. “One of the best ways to get better at [League of Legends]” said Baglione. “is to watch the pros play.”