League of Legends likely won’t have a major mid-season update in 2026

As League of Legends approaches Season 2 of 2026, Riot Games is taking a notably different approach from previous years, choosing stability over the usual midyear changes.

Unlike last year’s major update ahead of the Mid-Season Invitational, when Riot significantly reworked ADC items to mark the start of the second competitive split, this season is expected to arrive without a large-scale gameplay overhaul.

Instead, the most significant addition is expected to be the release of Locke, a leaked new champion who is currently slated to be the game’s only new character launch of 2026.

Riot designers let players know there’s no big update coming in LoL for 2026

According to lead gameplay designer Matt “Phroxzon” Leung-Harrison, the decision is aimed at making the long-running MOBA easier for casual and returning players to follow.

In a post on X, replying to a recent Sheep Esports interview, Leung-Harrison explained that the lack of update will actually be because the company wants to maintain player engagement.

“If we change the game too much, even if the changes are good, they can lead to a significant amount of players feeling like ‘League changes too much to keep up,”

Despite what conventional wisdom in the gaming space today suggest (more updates, a more engaged playerbase), Riot’s pace with League of Legends could be leading to the opposite effect.

Phroxzon also said Riot’s internal research supports the move toward fewer disruptive updates outside of the traditional preseason window. He also acknowledged that the scale of an update does not guarantee positive reception, citing last year’s addition of Atakhan as an example of a major change that drew mixed feedback.

The philosophy appears set to continue in the short term, with the upcoming Patch 26.8 also expected to be lighter after Riot pulled planned Viego buffs following community backlash.

Beyond this, it’s also expected that 2027 will see no new champions added to the game, as per community rumors. If this happens, it will be the first time in League of Legends history that no new champion updates were added to the game since the title’s release.