League of Legends has changed quite a bit from when it was first released back in 2009. While growing to become one of the world's largest eSports games, Riot has injected the MOBA with various game modes. Some have stuck, some have not.
In
a blog post today, Riot announced that Twisted Treeline will be retired at the end of this season. One of League's original alternative game modes, Twisted Treeline offered players a 3v3 experience on a different map.
Citing a lack of demand, Riot pointed out that the small population that does play Twisted Treeline results in
"long queue times, poor matchmaking, and an and ultimately an unsatisfying PvP experience." The developer also said that the mode's art, map design, and game pacing don't meet the
"current quality bar and player needs."
While Riot debated keeping the mode in place and giving it bare bones support, they ultimately decided that it wasn't worth it. Previous efforts to attract new players have been unsuccessful so they'd rather focus on other, more popular modes - like
Teamfight Tactics, which Riot said will now be a permanent addition to
League.
ARAM will also continue to be available with ongoing balancing coming every few patches. Other popular game modes, like
URF and
Nexus Blitz, will return at some point in the future, but they probably won't be supported as in depth as
Teamfight Tactics or
ARAM.
League of Legends is a free-to-play game available on PC. It's various game modes are included at no cost with cosmetic microtransactions available for purchase.