League of Legends developer Riot Games will be implementing a new "Team Builder" queue to the beta servers for those looking to form a team to their specific needs, with the ability to bring players together that complement each other’s expectations and intentions from the moment they enter the lobby.
Lead social systems designer Jeffrey Lin has revealed the new feature
on the Riot forums, giving an in-depth look at exactly how this new queue system will work for players looking to form a team to their specific needs. Lin outlined that the new queue system won't replace current queue functions, instead be offered on the side in due time.
Team Builder is intended to bring players together that complement each other’s expectations and intentions from the moment they enter the lobby. When everyone’s aligned on who will be going where and playing what, the only thing left to figure out is how to dominate the opposition.
Once we had a model for how Team Builder would bring players together, we started looking at matchmaking and how we could evolve it to help further enable good games. One of the most important things for a team’s enjoyment is making sure that they’re matched against similarly skilled players.
Team Builder will also be rolling out a new matchmaking system that will take into account your previous experiences with champions and playstyles. Never been mid with Annie before or venturing into the jungle for the first time? The new matchmaking system will take into account all these factors while putting you into a queue.
Those in fear that the new system will force a single meta need not worry, as Riot has outlined in a quick FAQ that players will be able to choose their own unique strategy.
"Feel like playing a double jungler strategy or want to send 5 players down the mid-lane? No problem. It might take longer to find 4 other players willing to try a crazy strategy but when you do, you'll know the entire team is bought in and you're going to have fun."