This project would have brought the thrilling world of platform fighting to Runeterra. According to reporter Mikhail Klimentov, Riot was developing a game called Pool Party, which was inspired by the popular Super Smash Bros. series. This game would have featured champions from League of Legends in a classic platform-based fighting system.

The development of Pool Party was quite significant, with about 70 to 80 employees working on it before the project was closed in May. The idea behind Pool Party was to create a game similar to Super Smash Bros but with characters from League of Legends.

Additionally, Riot planned to support the game’s esports scene, leveraging their extensive experience with successful games like League of Legends, VALORANT, and Teamfight Tactics.

Despite the promising concept, Pool Party was ultimately canceled. One of the main reasons for its cancellation was the hesitation from Riot’s higher-ups. They were concerned about releasing a game that might not succeed, especially after seeing the perceived failure of MultiVersus.

MultiVersus, a game developed by Warner Bros., featured characters from various universes within the company’s portfolio. Its performance made Riot executives cautious about entering the competitive fighting game market.

After reassessing the market, Riot executives concluded that there wasn’t much room for a new competitor to the long-standing and highly popular Super Smash Bros. series. Even though the series has been around for over two decades, it remains incredibly popular among its dedicated fans. No other game has managed to take its place as the top platform fighter in the gaming scene.

While Pool Party may have been canceled, Riot Games is still moving forward with 2XKO. They are planning to launch the first online play test for this upcoming fighting game in August. The League of Legends community remains excited for what Riot has in store with 2XKO.