Adapting Arcane for Teamfight Tactics: A Visual and Gameplay Feat

Adaptations in the gaming world are no easy task. Transforming beloved elements from one medium to another requires a Herculean effort. Riot Games and the team at Fortiche demonstrated this with their remarkable adaptation of League of Legends into the beautifully animated show Arcane. Now, they've taken it a step further by dedicating an entire season of Teamfight Tactics to the show.

Uniting Arcane and Teamfight Tactics in a Visual and Gameplay Symphony

Bringing Arcane's Art Style to TFT

For Teamfight Tactics, bringing Arcane's gorgeous art style was the first challenge. Known for its bright colors, the game had to incorporate the dark and sinister tones of Arcane while staying true to both projects. TFT gameplay art director Tori Ero took on this task. "We really try to have a lot of variety in our [set] themes for players over the year," Ero says. "I would say this one is probably our darkest set, and maybe art-wise, our least colorful."The close collaboration with Fortiche's animation team was crucial. "We were really fortunate to have so many beautiful concepts and existing work from the show that we did pull from," Ero explains. For the characters, they started with Fortiche's model turnarounds and painted over them for concepts. They also pulled in direct concepts and shots from the show to be their card art. This back-and-forth created a healthy excitement between both teams.

Adapting Characters for TFT

Adapting Arcane characters for TFT presented unique challenges. In Arcane, we see a lot of close-up cinematic shots, but in TFT, characters need to be recognizable from different angles. For example, Renni, the Zaunite with the massive chainsaw, had a cape that was difficult to incorporate with her chainsaw. The team went back to Fortiche and got a half-cape that ultimately became her final design.Another example is Sevika. Watching the first few episodes of season 2, it was clear she was a perfect candidate for a powerful late-game TFT unit. The team saw her in the show and asked Fortiche for everything they had on the character. Their illustrators pored through the documents and came up with really cool animations that feel distinct. Playing with a powerful Sevika feels great, just like in the show.

Representing Arcane in TFT Through Factions

Arcane's world is full of different factions, and this made for a perfect fit in TFT. Each unit in TFT has an Origin that gives players unique synergy bonuses. The early days of designing the set were about determining how to represent each faction as an Origin. For example, the Firelights, led by Ekko, were added with Ekko and Scar. Then Zeri, a League of Legends champion not in Arcane but a natural fit, was added. The team settled on giving them each a hoverboard to ride during fights. This careful process was repeated across all 14 Origins to make each one feel unique for TFT while still fitting in the Arcane universe.

Making Arcane Approachable for New Players

With an influx of new players, Into the Arcane needed to be approachable without sacrificing the complexity of Teamfight Tactics. Mortimer pointed to the start of games in this set as an example. In the past few sets, players voted on one of three portals. In Into the Arcane, a random modifier is chosen from a smaller pool of options. "We took a really intentional [look at], Is this actually necessary for the game or is this just complicated?" Mortimer says.For Whalen, this was also the perfect time to improve TFT's new-player experience. Among the onboarding improvements is the revamped Tockers Trials mode, which helps new players learn the game through clever TFT-based puzzles without the pressure of a full lobby."It fits with the team's broader ethos of making Into the Arcane the perfect place for people to go the minute they finish the Arcane finale," Baker said. "We hope fans of the show come away hungry for more story and look at TFT without being afraid of the mechanical element. It's a match-three game with a more relaxed pace, and we hope they'll try it and fall in love."