Riot Games Is Suing A Mobile Game That Looks Too Similar To League Of Legends

Ever played Mobile Legends? It’s the new hit game among mobile gamers in Malaysia and Southeast Asia in general. It’s a mobile MOBA, something seen before from games such as Vainglory. But instead of stripping down mechanics and map size, Mobile Legends play a lot like League Of Legends, but faster matches. But it looks and plays very similar.

Maybe too similar.

As such, Riot Games, developers of League Of Legends are now attempting a lawsuit against Mobile Legends developer Moonton. The lawsuit, which can be viewed here, details all the copyright infringement Riot is going against.

Seeing the comparisons, it’s easy to say why.

The lawsuit is against three games developed by Moonton. Magic Rush: Heroes, Mobile Legends: 5V5 MOBA, and Mobile Legends: Bang bang (though technically, the latter two games are the same game).

In Magic Rush’s case, Riot is pointing out how similar the heroes are to several heroes from League, down to their skill sets which only very little tweaks. For instance:

As for Mobile Legends, Riot is pointing out how the mobile game shares way too similar aesthetic choices to League. From how the map looks to its logo.

This is not the first time Riot has legally pursued Moonton. Riot first has made an effort to take down both apps from Apple’s  and Google’s store, which caused Mobile Legends: 5V5 MOBA to be taken down by Moonton themselves. They later released it again under the new name Mobile Legends: Bang bang.

Moonton has released their official statement of the matter, which mention the news to be ‘unreal information’ and mere ‘rumours’.

Mobile Legends have garnered quite the following here, showing that there is a market for a MOBA on mobile. But then again, taking inspirations a bit too much can lead to legal troubles as we can see here.

MOBAs are now a genre where there is room for some creative changes. Look at how SMITE and Paragon are doing in the console space and the aforementioned Vainglory on mobile. Even Dota 2 is different enough to League that it can stand on its own.

With Riot’s parent company Tencent launching its highly successful mobile MOBA Honour Of Kings to the West, it will be a matter of time until the game reaches here in Southeast Asia. The game is highly successful in China, though the company had to make time limits for underaged gamers to avoid them getting too addicted.

We will see how the court will decide if Moonton’s games are infringing Riot’s copyright or not.

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