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Riot Games Announces Major Changes to LoL’s Ranking System in 2024 Ranked Split 2: In a significant move, Riot Games has announced that it will be removing the long-standing demotion protection system from League of Legends (LoL) in the second ranked split of 2024. This change is expected to make the movement between divisions smoother and more fluid.
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A Controversial Feature Finally Gets Removed
The demotion protection system, one of the most contentious features in the history of LoL, is finally being phased out. This system, which has been a part of LoL for many years, has often been a topic of heated debate among the game’s community.
Changes to the Demotion Protection System
Starting from the second ranked split of 2024, players will no longer encounter a hard stop at zero League Points (LP) within a specific division during a losing streak. If a player’s LP loss exceeds the zero-LP threshold, they will be demoted to the lower division.
This system has been a significant part of LoL’s ranking structure since 2013, providing players with a safety net against demotion. However, not since the days of a raw Matchmaking Rating (MMR)-based ranking system has the LoL ranking system been as straightforward and fluid as it’s set to be in the second split of 2024.
Increased Competition and Hard Work
With the removal of the demotion protection system, players will have to work harder than ever before. They will need to not only climb from division to division but also prove that they truly belong in their current division. There will be no room for complacency, and players will have to consistently perform at their best to maintain their ranks.
Riot Games explained the rationale behind this change in a recent developer update. “Getting demoted to 50 LP when dropping divisions (e.g., Silver II to Silver III) felt pretty bad, but was an emergency lever we needed to pull to keep inflation under control while working on a better solution,” the company said. “This split we’re removing that drop and making demoting between divisions more fluid by moving your LP smoothly between divisions. So basically, if you lose at 10 LP and lose 25 LP, you will move to 85 LP in the division below.”
Consistency Across Games
This kind of system is already prevalent in other games, most notably VALORANT, which allows players to move up and down through the ranks without any padding. In the second split of LoL’s 2024 ranked season, your LP gains and losses will remain consistent across the board, regardless of where you stand in your current ranked division.
However, this rule won’t apply to demotions from tiers (Gold, Platinum, etc.) as they’ll still have the hard wall in place. While you can still get demoted from a tier, you’ll be placed at either 25, 50, or 75 LP at the next lowest division depending on your internal MMR.
Other Changes to Look Forward To
In addition to the removal of the demotion protection system, Riot Games is also planning other changes for the second split. These include a higher ceiling for players who perform well in provisional games, as well as the return of duo queue at the Master tier. These changes are expected to further enhance the competitive experience for players and make the game more exciting and challenging.
