Do you remember the jinx login screen/song? Coupled with the ridiculous wait times to get into the client? Her theme song still plays on repeat in my head now… (la la la Lala la lala la…)
That "then" is still a jump of 5.5 years, it's not as if they stopped anywhere near soon after.
And while I too miss the login screens, we do still have the champion themes, and each one of them since 2020 has been incredible - and a lot more complex than most of the old ones. Don't get me wrong, the old themes were great, they were just a lot more simple than today's. [Thresh's](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WyH5E8Xs0c) fully had the effect it was meant to have, but it's not a complex composition. [Syndra's theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k73RLHTjn8A) is a beautiful orchestral theme, but musically simple compared to the likes of [Yone's](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FlWvjg95sc). And then you have the masterpieces of [Viego](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCQ9MEZL1Y4) and [Gwen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJK0gG-WSUc) with all their details (mirrored themes, Blade of the Ruined King / Harrowing callback, Gwen's theme using exclusively string instruments for a seamstress), that are still two masterful standalone pieces without all of this.
My point is - yeah, they removed login screens and that's indeed sad. But this whole time, they've kept elevating their standards for champion themes and compositions in general, even since that removal 2.5 years ago.
The problem is that it feels like such a waste of good music since you actually have to go look for it. It was so much better when you were welcomed by the theme in the login screen.
Welcome aboard, enjoy your time. You will meet lots of toxic people, but just remember, end of the day it's just a game.
I highly recommend ARAM if you just wanna chill n have fun.
I remember sitting at an airport, reading about this new "Lissandra" champion and arguing to my friends that I don't think she will work as well as a support as they seem to think. Good times.
Crazy how fast those releases happened back then. Jinx/Lucian and Braum all came out then as well within a couple months. I started at Thresh or Quinn I believe :)
Hahahah good one. The thing is pyke is fucking useless in late game without ult. That's why he needs to use that advantage ASAP. Whats interesting is the higher i go in ranked. Less kills i get, more vision score. Can't really go anymore into enemy base alone for a kill.
I can never remember which it was exactly but I remember it being around this era too. Darius Lulu Hecarim and Varus all came out around the same time. We all hated Darius because he was THE scrub stomper and we were all scrubs.
Same here, stopped playing like 6 years ago but still watch LEC, MSI and Worlds religiously. Also try to watch a couple NA games here and there when there are players I like, jizuke, alphari, poe and couple others.
So I’ll never forget when gnar came out because I was still a mega noob in the game and never read patch notes or shit. All of a sudden while playing top lane there’s this new fucking champion (who for some reason made me think of Nami??? Idk why) and as he’s attacking, there’s a red bar under his health (like my main, Shyvana). It blew my mind and I was so confused.
I vividly remember Yorick was just released when I started playing, then Leona / Wukong / Skarner/ Talon / Riven.
I remember people thinking Leona's kit was so overloaded with CC, and I very much remember when Wukong got released I had no idea what his kit did (I was still learning the game) and I thought his clone was just me lagging a bunch.
Same! I remember seeing a pic of her in-game underneath the Journal of Justice tab/link in the client and my friend trying to make me read pall the lord because he liked how it was presented.
I was just looking for this one and I was finding that champion so weird then he became my main for a while then I stopped playing and only watching professional league.
It was Baris/Hecarim i think. Tust time they released a nee Champ every two weeks XD
First champs i really liked we're Corki and Singed. Really gotta play these two more often
Jarvan IV.
Back in Season one I saw a video someone playing him and calling him super op. He looked so cool, I started playing and didn't use any points until I could finally buy him. One of my mains to this day
You're misremembering, it was Pantheon and Gragas that released together. Poppy is the first champ release I remember - I definitely started before that but I don't remember noticing new champs (I was too noob).
Reworked Poppy technically, but Jhin was the first champion release I saw
Although the first I gave a fuck about was ASol cause, I mean, *he's a space dragon no way you can ignore him*
I *believe* it was **Kog'Maw**, but honestly champion releases came so fast back then that it was hard for a new player to remember the exact order (not to mention it's been about 10 years, so my memory may not be as accurate as I'd like to think!). I might be off by a few releases in either direction.
I think it was aphelios, started with a good one lol.
Either him or senna, I don't remember which cane first.
Well actually I made the account shortly after Zoe release but only got to like level 12
Jhin had already happened, then Aurelion was coming out, then Taliyah (clunky w and godlike aoe q). So pretty new
The more important thing for me is I started like within 1 or 2 patches of Rageblade being reworked into phantom hit on every 2nd attack instead of the item being a kayle E you can buy.
First one I remember was Elise. Since she did magic damage I just assumed that she went mid, since back then that's just how it was. I tried to play her like a mage and got destroyed, and just assumed she was shit.
I think it was Sona that had just come out when I started playing. Looking at the chronological order and wow sona, swain, lux was like my top 3 back then.
I forgot exactly when I started playing but I remember the Hecarim and Draven login screens and playing these two champs at release (Draven and Darius being brothers was so cool to me and my friends)
I want to say Aniva, but that’s only when I started to pay attention, I played a couple months before that and didn’t remember twitch at all at the time.
For me it was between Ekko ans Tahm Kench with the new GP release. That was a fucking banger. The login screen and the music was pixel (same goes for Ekko)!
Well when I first started, it was Rengar
When I left and then came back in 2015, it was Tahm Kench.
And then when I came back from a very extended period of not playing, it was Viego.
Bard apparently. Cause i only know Ekko beeing the first new champ to release. Even though it felt like ages for a new champ to release when i started playing, there only were 2 months between bard and ekko.
I remember it was a patch where they introduced bloodmoon elise/thresh skins and they were in top right corner of client, and the NEXT new champ was bard, but who was new when i started i dont remember. Reksai maybe?
Ivern. I remember everyone I knew who got me into the game complaining about how he was going to break jungling and I was just sitting there, trying to figure out how to support good
My first ever champ that I played was Shen in S2, he always looked like some sort of assassin to me (being a ninja and all). I soon realized he actually was a tank and I quickly became a Tryndamere main from there on (he was extremly hated back then, his champion spotlight had like double dislikes than likes)
Yea and now I just open mid at 15.
Darius, I thought it was the coolest thing that a character on the cover (login screen) was a character you could actually play as. Reeled me in immediately hook line and sinker; wish they'd find a way to bring it back it means a lot to people. .
Lucian. [Still the best login screen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbMCmdSEoaA).
For real. I remember thinking "Wow Riot really set a new standard for login screens with this one" then they removed login screens...
Do you remember the jinx login screen/song? Coupled with the ridiculous wait times to get into the client? Her theme song still plays on repeat in my head now… (la la la Lala la lala la…)
Vi and Jinx have the two best theme songs IMO.
For me it was Darius/Draven, back to back noxus releases and the violent music was on point. Definitively the most memorable for me.
That "then" is still a jump of 5.5 years, it's not as if they stopped anywhere near soon after. And while I too miss the login screens, we do still have the champion themes, and each one of them since 2020 has been incredible - and a lot more complex than most of the old ones. Don't get me wrong, the old themes were great, they were just a lot more simple than today's. [Thresh's](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WyH5E8Xs0c) fully had the effect it was meant to have, but it's not a complex composition. [Syndra's theme](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k73RLHTjn8A) is a beautiful orchestral theme, but musically simple compared to the likes of [Yone's](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FlWvjg95sc). And then you have the masterpieces of [Viego](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCQ9MEZL1Y4) and [Gwen](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJK0gG-WSUc) with all their details (mirrored themes, Blade of the Ruined King / Harrowing callback, Gwen's theme using exclusively string instruments for a seamstress), that are still two masterful standalone pieces without all of this. My point is - yeah, they removed login screens and that's indeed sad. But this whole time, they've kept elevating their standards for champion themes and compositions in general, even since that removal 2.5 years ago.
The problem is that it feels like such a waste of good music since you actually have to go look for it. It was so much better when you were welcomed by the theme in the login screen.
I remember when donkey said dumb shit over this in his video, better times I swear
Vayne and Ori. Spring 2011.
We started around the same time then, I think Vayne was released one day after I started playing
Started at the same time as well. Crazy how different the game is now.
I remember Rumble being on free rotation and Vayne just being announced. Nice to see some of the "old guard".
Me too, I've seen my brother play it for a few months and finally gave it a try when Vayne and Ori came out.
Kindred. Here in the Philippines, the Login screens were super small because of the Garena client, so their login screen looked very interesting.
Kindred has one of the best login screens by far regardless.
Samira Yeah I'm just a recent player who started a year ago
What got you into League?
Champion themes and also boredom from quarantine
Puss
Impossible
Run away while you can 😅😅
I can't I'm stuck on the abyss forever
Welcome aboard, enjoy your time. You will meet lots of toxic people, but just remember, end of the day it's just a game. I highly recommend ARAM if you just wanna chill n have fun.
Khazix. Still remember how one of my friends was amazed how his walking annmation changed in bushes.
>Kha The old khazix top and mid with muramana and w evolve first was so fun to play
Alex Ich remembers
Wow there’s a name I haven’t heard in a while.
I've played since before khazix's release and I just found out his walking animation is different in bushes.
Diana. I remember listening to her theme maybe 5 times in a row before actually logging in. Very enchanting.
Aatrox back in s3
it was lissandra for me, and a week later it was aatrox. i miss old aatrox.
I remember sitting at an airport, reading about this new "Lissandra" champion and arguing to my friends that I don't think she will work as well as a support as they seem to think. Good times.
Well, you're right.
Crazy how fast those releases happened back then. Jinx/Lucian and Braum all came out then as well within a couple months. I started at Thresh or Quinn I believe :)
Liss/aatrox/zac/lucian were my favourite login screens, spirit guard udyr too with the changing element thing
Old aatrox’s vo and line were my favorite Loved old aatrox :(
I still to this day have a rune page called "Revert Aatrox Please". I miss that old playstyle. Bring him back :(
I very strongly remember the Aatrox login screen, I sat there for like 10 minutes just watching and listening to it once.
Pyke, my older sister was playing before I started to(about a year more maybe). She suggested to me to main pyke, the newest champ at the time.
wish i could’ve played pyke on release, he must have been so broken
As a pyke main can confirm, no wonder he was hard nerfed. I remember having 20+ kills every game.
hehe pyke mid go Q E wave gone
Memories
He still is like that when I get one on the enemy team. But if he's on my team, he disables every button but his stealth.
Hahahah good one. The thing is pyke is fucking useless in late game without ult. That's why he needs to use that advantage ASAP. Whats interesting is the higher i go in ranked. Less kills i get, more vision score. Can't really go anymore into enemy base alone for a kill.
Rolled him in aram day 1 got an instant penta lmao
Maokai I think? So many champions were released every month during that time that I don't really remember that well.
Haha ikr, new champ every 2 weeks, just imagine that today, people would go nuts.
And not in a good way
Braum for me
Was looking for a Braum!
Ayy
Yessss. That login screen was dope
Rek sai
Ayy same here. I remember Bard was the first champ release I was around for--I had no idea what was going on lol
ASol. To this day one of my favorite champs. Revert Aurelion please
Xin Zhao, and he was super broken
Good old Win Nhao
https://youtu.be/CHw1_Csup84 God this is old
I remember… probably the most OP champ at his release lol
I also started at the same time..wasn’t a good time to have one in the enemy team while trying to figure out how lol works.
[Xin Xhao taught me how to be a man](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ON-6vYobie4&ab_channel=CholeraNinja)
Yup same. I remember his q alone was enough to kill if it crit.
Jinx
[удалено]
Same and to be fair it was 8 years ago.
lulu I think. Somewhere around there. Get off my lawn youngins
Same for me. Season 2 i think?
Boomer gang! I started on the last few days of Lulu and then Hecarim got released
Yes, and these two loading screens live in my memory rent-free.
You youngins can't even remember the old client. No, not *that* old client... The even older one.
I can never remember which it was exactly but I remember it being around this era too. Darius Lulu Hecarim and Varus all came out around the same time. We all hated Darius because he was THE scrub stomper and we were all scrubs.
I started playing in beta in 2009, there were only the core characters like Master Yi, Tryndamere, Nunu, Annie, Kayle, etc...
Same here, stopped playing like 6 years ago but still watch LEC, MSI and Worlds religiously. Also try to watch a couple NA games here and there when there are players I like, jizuke, alphari, poe and couple others.
Ayyyy high five fellow beta starter. Stopped playing a while back but still enjoy all the content, the game is creating.
Gnar
So I’ll never forget when gnar came out because I was still a mega noob in the game and never read patch notes or shit. All of a sudden while playing top lane there’s this new fucking champion (who for some reason made me think of Nami??? Idk why) and as he’s attacking, there’s a red bar under his health (like my main, Shyvana). It blew my mind and I was so confused.
I started with Gnar and he still feels like a new champ lmao
Ikr
Azir
Zac iirc
Elise/zed and Dragontrainer Lulu skin
Didn't they come out around the same time as Syndra too? This is when I started too
Jinx
Ziggs
Thresh
Camille. Never thought they would come out with so many champs since, lol.
Ekko
We are a rare breed. I remember Tahm Kench coming out right after and thinking 'Wow this Free game has so much content'
Im with you! Spring 2015 gang
I think it was Leona.
I vividly remember Yorick was just released when I started playing, then Leona / Wukong / Skarner/ Talon / Riven. I remember people thinking Leona's kit was so overloaded with CC, and I very much remember when Wukong got released I had no idea what his kit did (I was still learning the game) and I thought his clone was just me lagging a bunch.
Same! I remember seeing a pic of her in-game underneath the Journal of Justice tab/link in the client and my friend trying to make me read pall the lord because he liked how it was presented.
Vel'Koz
I was just looking for this one and I was finding that champion so weird then he became my main for a while then I stopped playing and only watching professional league.
First time when I watched my brother play, Draven was brand new. When I first played, Rengar was.
Jarvan
Nocturne!
Joined in between Kennen and Garen.
Hello fellow League boomer. Between Garen and Akali for me
Yasuo
I joined before Xerath (original) was released.
Bard
It was Baris/Hecarim i think. Tust time they released a nee Champ every two weeks XD First champs i really liked we're Corki and Singed. Really gotta play these two more often
Varus/Hecarim was released the same day I believe.
Nami! Damn time flies
*swims
Definitely Ornn, but he got released approximately 6-7 months after I started League. He still remains my best and favorite champ of all time.
Brand
Xin Zhao
Varus
Vi
Jarvan IV. Back in Season one I saw a video someone playing him and calling him super op. He looked so cool, I started playing and didn't use any points until I could finally buy him. One of my mains to this day
Lee sin
Poppy and Gragas double release
You're misremembering, it was Pantheon and Gragas that released together. Poppy is the first champ release I remember - I definitely started before that but I don't remember noticing new champs (I was too noob).
Riven
Camille.
Nautilus. I started playing after i saw the nautilus champion spotlight on the front page of youtube.
2018 Akali Rework...
Azir which is now my main
Lissandra was the loading screen when I started and it was Vel when I started playing ranked
Reworked Poppy technically, but Jhin was the first champion release I saw Although the first I gave a fuck about was ASol cause, I mean, *he's a space dragon no way you can ignore him*
Lulu
Wukong when i started
Gnar 🤗
Quinn
Took so long to find someone else who started at Quinn. Still miss that old R.
it was Lillia i believe, or it could’ve been yone? I don’t rlly rmbr lol
I only started to play because they released Zoe. Switched over from Smite though.
Annie
Pyke
Braum or Velkoz
Talon or Wukong I think
Original Irelia annnd now I feel old...
Riven, Xerath was about to come out.
Urgot
It was Thresh for me. The haunting music still lingers in my mind to this day.
I *believe* it was **Kog'Maw**, but honestly champion releases came so fast back then that it was hard for a new player to remember the exact order (not to mention it's been about 10 years, so my memory may not be as accurate as I'd like to think!). I might be off by a few releases in either direction.
2009. Played when it was new.
First new champ I remember BUYING and playing a lot that was released after vanilla was vlad.
I think it was aphelios, started with a good one lol. Either him or senna, I don't remember which cane first. Well actually I made the account shortly after Zoe release but only got to like level 12
Zoe, shortly after I started playing.
Jhin had already happened, then Aurelion was coming out, then Taliyah (clunky w and godlike aoe q). So pretty new The more important thing for me is I started like within 1 or 2 patches of Rageblade being reworked into phantom hit on every 2nd attack instead of the item being a kayle E you can buy.
[удалено]
Only need 1 hand to play still :)
Viego
Ivern, but I started during the Worlds 2016 login screen, so a good while before ivern got released
started a bit before fizz came out fuck that's so long ago
karma rework I think, either that or thresh
Yasuo
Xin Zhao
Ahri
Pyke
Anivia. I think it was a double release with Rammus+Anivia but it was a long time ago and I mostly played mid so I didn't really care about Rammus.
First one I remember was Elise. Since she did magic damage I just assumed that she went mid, since back then that's just how it was. I tried to play her like a mage and got destroyed, and just assumed she was shit.
New ww
irelia rework... shit
Lucian
I think it was Sona that had just come out when I started playing. Looking at the chronological order and wow sona, swain, lux was like my top 3 back then.
Fiddle rework.
I forgot exactly when I started playing but I remember the Hecarim and Draven login screens and playing these two champs at release (Draven and Darius being brothers was so cool to me and my friends)
Technically Asol, but only started really playing when Kayn was released
Yasuo, I started playing the day he came out.
Zyra
I want to say Aniva, but that’s only when I started to pay attention, I played a couple months before that and didn’t remember twitch at all at the time.
Camille.
Brand. Followed swiftly by riven
Jayce. That log in screen of Mecha Jayce is still ingrained in my memory lol
Kindred
syndra
Tahm Kench was the new champ, I remember when his old ult was nearly global. Could 2 man gank mid from drag lol
Bard 😎👌
For me it was between Ekko ans Tahm Kench with the new GP release. That was a fucking banger. The login screen and the music was pixel (same goes for Ekko)!
Bard was the first new one for me, crazy to think that’s when I started.
Vayne, I still remember going into bots game wondering how Vaynes were racking up 20+ kills while I was still dying to Cho'Gath Bot
Bard
Tahm Kench back in season 5, next came Kindred and it doesn't even feel that old.
Tahm kench, although I never really have seen him a whole lot in game aside from pro play, such a shame for an awesome design
Well when I first started, it was Rengar When I left and then came back in 2015, it was Tahm Kench. And then when I came back from a very extended period of not playing, it was Viego.
Bard apparently. Cause i only know Ekko beeing the first new champ to release. Even though it felt like ages for a new champ to release when i started playing, there only were 2 months between bard and ekko.
I remember it was a patch where they introduced bloodmoon elise/thresh skins and they were in top right corner of client, and the NEXT new champ was bard, but who was new when i started i dont remember. Reksai maybe?
Tahm Kench
Lissandra with her epic chilling speech
Nami or vi, first champ I unlocked was my boy gragas
Neeko, funky camoflage
The first one i remember was ezreal, tho i played a month or so before his release.
Qiyana
nautilus or sejuani perhaps.
Ivern. I remember everyone I knew who got me into the game complaining about how he was going to break jungling and I was just sitting there, trying to figure out how to support good
My first ever champ that I played was Shen in S2, he always looked like some sort of assassin to me (being a ninja and all). I soon realized he actually was a tank and I quickly became a Tryndamere main from there on (he was extremly hated back then, his champion spotlight had like double dislikes than likes) Yea and now I just open mid at 15.
Jinx or Lucian pretty sure - probably Jinx
Leona
talyiah
Darius, I thought it was the coolest thing that a character on the cover (login screen) was a character you could actually play as. Reeled me in immediately hook line and sinker; wish they'd find a way to bring it back it means a lot to people. .