Who is the 'gaming tycoon' about to make a League of Legends movie in Vietnam?

Riot Games is a video game development and publishing company and esports tournament organizer based in the United States. The company is globally famous for many popular games, especially League of Legends (LMHT), a game that attracts up to 650 million players worldwide .

The company is in the process of surveying locations in Cat Ba, Hai Phong , for a project to produce a 9-episode TV series based on League of Legends and the animated series of the same name. Filming is expected to take place in late 2025.

Which "cinematic universe" is about to be filmed in Vietnam?

Riot Games, the creator of the popular League of Legends game, doesn’t just stop at making games. In recent years, the company has made strong strides in the field of film production, affirming its ambition to “land” in cinema.

In 2021, Riot Games created a "fever" with the launch of the animated series "Arcane" on Netflix. The film not only conquered League of Legends fans but also attracted a large audience thanks to its engaging storyline, beautiful images and impressive music.

The hit animated series Arcane has "paved the way" for Riot Games to attack the film industry. Photo: Riot Games.

Arcane has been a huge success, winning nine Annie Awards and an Emmy for Outstanding Animated Feature. The film has proven that Riot Games can not only create great games, but also produce high-quality cinematic works.

The success of "Arcane" has paved the way for Riot Games to continue expanding the League of Legends universe on screen. The company is nurturing various film projects, including movies and television series.

Recently, Riot Games also said that it is surveying and planning to film a 9-episode TV series based on the League of Legends game in Cat Ba, Hai Phong at the end of 2025.

"Giant" in the gaming industry

Riot Games was founded in September 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill. From an independent game studio, the company has now expanded to over 4,500 employees in over 20 offices worldwide.

Despite only releasing a handful of titles, Riot Games has made a strong impression. In particular, League of Legends - their first game, developed based on a mod of Warcraft III, still maintains a great attraction to the audience even though it was released more than 15 years ago.

In the mid-2000s, both Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill noticed that many game companies were focused on launching new products and neglected to support games that were already released.

Riot Games headquarters in the early days. Photo: ForTheWin.

They also share a passion for the Asian game distribution model, where players get to experience the game for free and can purchase additional content.

The two later agreed that the popular Warcraft III mod Defense of the Ancients (DotA) was a testament to long-term product development and support, and the initial idea for Riot Games gradually took shape.

With $1.5 million in capital from family and investors, Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill founded Riot Games in September 2006. The company's original headquarters was an old machine shop located on the freeway in Santa Monica.

Riot Games then directly recruited DotA creators like Steve "Guinsoo" Feak to develop a DotA successor without the need for the original Warcraft III game files.

In just four months, the team developed a prototype of League of Legends and presented it to the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2007 in hopes of raising additional funding.

League of Legends is now a major monument in the world gaming community. Photo: Riot Games .

In 2008, Riot reached an agreement with Tencent to publish the game in China. League of Legends was announced on October 7, 2008, and its beta version was released in April 2009. On October 27, 2009, League of Legends officially launched in North America.

League of Legends quickly became a big name. Regular updates and an ever-expanding roster of champions helped maintain steady growth. By 2014, the game had reached 67 million monthly active players, double the 32 million it had in 2012.

League of Legends’ presence in the esports scene has also helped attract new players. Since the first World Championship in 2011, prize pools and viewership have grown exponentially.

League of Legends currently has a huge player community, with 180 million monthly active players and more than 170 champions. This game is considered one of the monuments of world e-sports.

According to statistics from Esports Charts , the 2024 World Championship Finals between T1 and Bilibili Gaming (BLG) reached 6.94 million concurrent viewers, becoming the match with the highest number of viewers in eSports history.

After League of Legends, Riot Games continues to reap success with Valorant. Photo: Riot Games.

In 2020, Riot Games' second biggest game, "Valorant", was released and quickly attracted attention. Inspired by the legendary "Counter-Strike" , Valorant added a unique element with character classes possessing their own skills.

Positive feedback from experts and players has prompted Riot Games to build a professional eSports tournament system, starting in November 2020. Besides Valorant , Riot Games is also developing two game projects, "Project L" and "Project F".

Source: https://znews.vn/chan-dung-cong-ty-sap-lam-phim-o-viet-nam-post1537411.html