Would you pay $500 for a League of Legends skin?

• A new skin pack to commemorate the induction of esports icon Faker is making waves
• And not in a good way, with the highest tier of this topping out at $500
• So that only leaves one question, what the-?

Now, this is something which is usually beyond our remit. But hey, everyone has been talking about it, so why not us? And yes, if you’re not already familiar, Riot Games, the studio behind League of Legends, has made waves (and not in a good way) with the announcement of a new skin pack that tops out at $500.

This isn’t just ‘one skin’ as some outlets make it sound like, but in fact, an entire pack themed after major esports star Faker. As the first entry into Riot’s new ‘Hall of Legends‘, Faker’s induction has been marked by a number of in-game rewards earnable by players.

However, it’s a set of skins for the champion Ahri which are controversial, with the top tier coming in at around 59260 RP, or $500 by most estimates. Suffice it to say the reaction has been not particularly positive, even for a community now used to high-priced skins.

Do we have a leg to stand on?

Now look, we can already hear people saying (or typing as it were) “Well, how can you criticise this sort of thing? Isn’t mobile gaming basically a microtransaction-ridden hellhole?” Which, sweeping generalisation aside, yes, you could possibly say that.

But that doesn’t make it acceptable and doesn’t mean we have to put up with it. As we always think, in-app purchases should always be optional, and at the very least somewhat restrained in price. And we’re never going to advocate for spending money when there’s an easier way to do it.

There is, after all a big difference between buying a game to enjoy it, and spending money piecemeal for years on a game you don’t. And also we’re just going to say it, even mobile games aren’t asking anyone to drop $500 for a skin, unless this ends up coming to Wild Rift that is.