- Phroxzon has been promoted to lead gameplay designer of League of Legends
- Solcrushed will replace him in his earlier post as the Preseason Design Lead
- Meanwhile, Phreak will serve as live balance design lead
Riot’s Phroxzon and Phreak have both been crucial figures in the League of Legends community for years and now they will have even more responsibilities and spotlight.
Riot Мakes Major Shift
Over the years, the League of Legends devs have tried to communicate the game’s changes on time with the LoL community. Many fans would recognize the names of David “Phreak” Turley and Matt “Phroxon” Leung-Harrison, the former being a popular League caster while the latter being a key figure in the design team of the game. Both have already been very popular and active members of the community and now they will have even more prominent positions in it.
Ahead of the start of the World Championship 2023, Phroxon has been promoted to lead gameplay designer, while Phreak will serve as live balance design lead. “I’m excited to announce that I’m the new Lead Gameplay Designer for League of Legends! I’ve been on Summoner’s Rift now the last 8 years and been leading it for the last 2,” wrote Phroxon on Twitter yesterday.
“I have large shoes to fill with the previous giants that have held the role; Axes, Scruffy, and Meddler. I’ve learnt a lot from each of you and hope to take those lessons forward to keep building League gameplay forward,” the League dev explained.
Phroxon also said what Axes, one 0of his predecessors will do now, while also praising him for his work. Axes will be heading into League R&D to lead some projects, while Solcrushed, who previously worked on Wild Rift, will come on Phroxon’s earlier post as the Preseason Design Lead. Phroxon also explained that he will continue to be heavily involved in both these areas, working closely with Design leads to determine high-level direction and ensure high-quality design changes.
Meanwhile, Phreak makes yet another step in his colorful career. He started working as a League of Legends caster way back in 2009, but eventually joined the development team in 2022 as a game designer. Considering he’s been a key figure in the reporting of a lot of Champion Spotlights and Patch Previews, it makes sense that he would now play a significant role in shaping the next season.
The community seems to have met the news with an overall positive response, with many pro players and streamers congratulating the two Riot employees on their promotions. Some fans even begged Phreak to launch a podcast to talk about his journey at Riot Games.
