MSI 24 — Expansive, electrifying identity and motion for the global esports phenomenon
Launched in 2009 by Riot Games, League of Legends (LoL) is a multiplayer online video game with a vast global fanbase - in 2023, LoL boasted an average of over 10 milion concurrent players. Hosted in a different city for three weeks every May, LoL's Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) tournament is a vibrant live spectacle held in huge arenas, with online figures peaking at 2.8 million viewers (MSI 24). Entering the gaming sector for the first time, Studio Dumbar/DEPT® created an all-encompassing design package for MSI 24 in Chengdu, China.
Strategy
Our design package had to be rigorous and robust: a host of different vendors would work with it before and during the tournament, across a multitude of touch-points. It had to be expansive too, encompassing a staggering number of templates and assets for motion, socials, print, event graphics, and more. MSI 24 was defined by the tagline, Become the Unknown. To support this, Riot Games sought visuals with a mysterious, dangerous, powerful tone. This attitude became the guiding principle for our work.
Design
We devised a powerful and engaging framework for visuals: bold, expressive typography; a primary colour palette dominated by black and red; Journey Data visuals resembling a futuristic, Ul-inspired textural layer; and Empyrean Shapes – graphic icons inspired by LoL lore. We created a rich and immersive motion language; at its core, The Aberration - a graphic interpretation of the Unknown that can be slow and ominous, sporadic and reactive, or more linear and up tempo, depending on the application's requirements. Organic and spectral, The Aberration provides a consistent thread throughout the visual identity. Along with The Aberration, we also modelled and animated our first LoL champion, Nocturne.
Results
We delivered a fool-proof package with in-depth guidelines, assets and templates to service the many outside vendors working on MSI 24, The scope and rigour of our design package ensured a rich and seamlessly branded framework for the tournament, both online and off-line — from a motion-led campaign on social media, through live online broadcasts and onwards, to the final showdown.
