As they refined League of Legends ' initial creation, they pitched investors a video game company rooted in e-commerce. The first person Riot Games recruited was Steve 'Guinsoo' Feak, one of the early developers of DotA Allstars, a game considered to have been foundational to the MOBA genre. Riot Games was established in September 2006 in Santa Monica, California. īeck and Merrill sought funding from family and angel investors, raising US$1.5 million to launch their company.

They also drew inspiration from Asian video game designers who released their games for no up-front cost and instead charged for additional perks. Beck and Merrill believed too many video game developers diverted their focus from game to game too often, distinguishing Defense of the Ancients as an indication that games could be supported and monetized long-term. Riot Games' founders Brandon 'Ryze' Beck and Marc 'Tryndamere' Merrill became friends while roommates at the University of Southern California, where the two studied business. The company was criticized for its use of forced arbitration in response to these allegations. Riot has faced allegations and lawsuits claiming a toxic workplace culture, including gender discrimination and sexual harassment. The company, which had 20 offices worldwide as of 2023, sells corporate sponsorships, merchandise, and streaming rights for its leagues.

Riot Games operates 12 international League of Legends esports leagues, the League of Legends World Championship and the Valorant Champions Tour. The company worked with Fortiche to release Arcane, a television series based on the League of Legends universe. Riot Games' publishing arm, Riot Forge, oversees the production of League of Legends spin-offs by other developers.

In 2011, Riot Games was acquired by Chinese conglomerate Tencent. It was founded in September 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill to develop League of Legends and went on to develop several spin-off games and the unrelated first-person shooter game Valorant. is an American video game developer, publisher and esports tournament organizer based in Los Angeles, California.

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