Do you play League of Legends, and what do you think about being able to use voice chat with your entire team? Riot Games is preparing a major change to the game’s communication system, allowing players to speak directly with teammates they are matched with, even if they are not part of the same premade group.
Until now, League of Legends voice chat has mainly been available for players who enter a match together as a premade group. With the upcoming expansion, players will also be able to communicate with the other members of their team, making it possible to coordinate during matches without having to rely entirely on text chat.
The feature is planned to begin rolling out with Patch 26.20 on October 7, initially reaching the North American and Oceania servers. Riot has not announced a specific date for the Turkish server yet. The company will also use the results from the initial rollout to determine when the feature can be introduced to additional regions.
League of Legends team voice chat details
Riot is also preparing several changes to make voice communication more practical and easier to use once the feature becomes available to a wider audience.
- Players will need to have at least Honor Level 3 to use voice chat.
- Noise cancellation will be improved to reduce keyboard sounds and other background noise.
- Voice connections are being improved to make joining voice chat faster and more stable.
- Voice filters will allow players to change how their voice sounds while still keeping communication understandable.
- Players who repeatedly engage in inappropriate behavior may have their access to voice communication restricted.
The Honor Level requirement is also intended to help Riot manage the moderation challenges that come with opening voice communication to a much larger number of players. The company plans to expand the feature gradually to servers where it can provide the necessary support and moderation.
The biggest advantage of the new system will be the ability to communicate immediately during important moments. Instead of stopping to type a message, players will be able to tell their teammates that they are coming for a gank, need help, want to contest an objective or are preparing for a team fight.
This could make communication considerably faster, especially during situations where every second matters. Players will be able to explain their plans while continuing to play, potentially making coordinated plays easier even when they are matched with players they have never played with before.
At the same time, giving random teammates access to voice communication could create new problems, particularly when it comes to toxicity and disruptive behavior. Riot’s Honor Level requirement and moderation measures are therefore expected to play an important role in determining how successfully the system works across the wider player base.
For now, North America and Oceania will be the first regions to receive team-wide voice chat, with other regions expected to follow depending on the results of the initial rollout.
Would you use voice chat with random teammates in League of Legends? What do you think about this change?
