Riot Games has laid out its League of Legends plans for the next 12 months, including when exactly we’ll be seeing the return of the hugely popular LoL Arena game mode.
Despite how popular League Arena mode quickly became, Riot never intended to make it a permanent inclusion. Its brief return in December was exactly that, with the playlist removed again after just a month. The good news is it’s not gone forever.
Here’s when League Arena fans should circle the calendar.
When is League Arena coming back?
Riot has told League fans that Arena will be returning in the first half of the 2024 season. The exact date for the comeback of Arena mode is May 1, the League devs confirmed. The mode will go live alongside the launch of Patch 14.9 and will remain available for “much longer than previous releases,” according to Riot. The game mode is expected to be live throughout the entirety of 2024’s second ranked split.
What changes will Riot make to Arena next?
The biggest change coming to Arena once it lands on the League servers again is the number of participating teams is going to be bumped up from four to eight. Teams will still consist of two partnered players, but following this 2024 update, all Arena matches will be bigger than ever—they’ll sport 16 players in every lobby.
There will also be changes made to the mode’s UI, as well as entirely new battlefields and more Augments. New items called “Prismatic items” are also being added to Arena mode, and they’ll “allow you to achieve build fantasies that you normally wouldn’t be able to,” according to Riot.
Make sure you read up on all the best (and worst) League champions in Arena so you’re ready to win as soon as the limited-time mode opens again.
To accommodate the increased number of players in Arena, another new map, known as the Koi Pond, will also be added to Arena, making for larger battles and more hectic exchanges each round. A new shop area—complete with overhauls to the in-between round UI—will also be coming when Arena makes its return next month.
LoL‘s Arena mode will return to the live servers on May 1 but will be available to test on the PBE two weeks prior.
