Riot Games

Riot Games, Inc.

Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Video games, Esports
Founded	September 2006 (2006-09)
Founder	Brandon Beck, Marc Merrill
Headquarters	Los Angeles , United States
Area served	Worldwide
Key people	Dylan Jadeja (CEO), Nicolo Laurent (President), Scott Gelb (CTO/COO)
Products	League of Legends, Valorant, Legends of Runeterra, Teamfight Tactics, Arcane (animated series)
Owner	Tencent
Number of employees	2,500 (2018)
Website	www.riotgames.com

Riot Games, Inc. is a Los Angeles-based American company specializing in video game development, publishing, and esports event organization. Established in September 2006 by Brandon Beck and Marc Merrill, Riot initially gained prominence with its flagship game League of Legends, later expanding its portfolio with spin-offs and the unrelated tactical shooter Valorant. The firm became a subsidiary of Chinese conglomerate Tencent in 2011, which bolstered its worldwide presence and financial growth. Riot Forge, formerly the company’s publishing arm for third-party League of Legends spin-offs, ceased operations in January 2024. Additionally, Riot collaborated with the French animation studio Fortiche to create Arcane, an animated series set within the League of Legends universe.

Riot manages premier esports competitions for both League of Legends and the Valorant Champions Tour, generating revenue through sponsorship deals, merchandise sales, and streaming rights. By 2023, it maintained 23 offices globally. Despite significant market influence and expansion, Riot has confronted legal challenges and criticism related to workplace culture concerns, including allegations of gender bias, sexual harassment, and controversies surrounding mandatory arbitration agreements.

History

Brandon "Ryze" Beck and Marc "Tryndamere" Merrill met as roommates and business students at the University of Southern California. Motivated by the success of games like Defense of the Ancients and inspired by Asian microtransaction models, they recognized an opportunity to support games over long-term lifecycles.

Founded in September 2006 in Santa Monica, California, Riot Games launched with $1.5 million in funding from family members and angel investors. Early hires included Steve "Guinsoo" Feak, a pivotal contributor to the MOBA genre. The founders proposed a free-to-play model supported by e-commerce revenue streams, a concept initially met with skepticism by traditional publishers. Subsequent investment rounds secured $8 million from venture capital firms such as Benchmark and FirstMark Capital, alongside Chinese conglomerate Tencent—who later assumed ownership and managed distribution in China.

Following half a year of beta testing, League of Legends was released as a free-to-play title on October 27, 2009. Riot engaged directly with its player base to incorporate feedback into ongoing development. In 2010, the company took control of its European distribution channels and established its European headquarters in Dublin. Tencent purchased a 93% stake in Riot in 2011 for $400 million and acquired full ownership by 2015.

To combat toxicity within League of Legends, Riot implemented a player behavior team in 2012 that utilized psychological research and community management techniques, resulting in a 30% decrease in harassment complaints. By 2013, the game had become the most-played multiplayer PC title worldwide, reaching over 100 million monthly users by 2016.

In 2015, Riot relocated to a new 20-acre campus located in western Los Angeles. The following year, it acquired Radiant Entertainment and reassigned its Rising Thunder development team to new projects. In October 2017, founders Beck and Merrill transitioned from daily operational roles to focus on game development strategy; executive leaders Dylan Jadeja (CFO), Scott Gelb (CTO), and Nicolo Laurent (President) assumed operational responsibilities—with Gelb serving as COO and Laurent as CEO—while Beck and Merrill became chairpersons. By mid-2018, Riot employed approximately 2,500 people across 24 offices worldwide.

October 2019 marked announcements for several expansions: League of Legends: Wild Rift targeting mobile devices and consoles; a standalone mobile version of Teamfight Tactics; and the collectible card game Legends of Runeterra, all aimed for release in 2020—though Wild Rift experienced delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Additional projects included the tactical shooter initially known as Project A (later unveiled as Valorant), fighting game Project L, and multiplayer title Project F, all set within the Runeterra universe.

In December 2019, Riot introduced Riot Forge under Leanne Loombe’s leadership to collaborate with smaller studios on developing League of Legends spin-offs; announced titles included Ruined King: A League of Legends Story and Convergence: A League of Legends Story. The following month saw the launch of Riot Tabletop producing games such as Tellstones: King's Gambit.

After previously investing in Hypixel Studios, Riot completed its acquisition in April 2020 to publish their sandbox game Hytale. That same month, Riot inaugurated an office in Singapore dedicated to supporting existing franchises while developing new titles. Jason Bunge was appointed Chief Marketing Officer in October 2020. In October 2021, Riot expanded fan engagement capabilities by acquiring Kanga Talent, specializing in merchandising services and content aggregation.

The partnership with French studio Fortiche culminated in the release of the critically acclaimed animated series Arcane on Netflix in November 2021; Tencent handled distribution within China. Following this success, Riot increased investment in Fortiche with key executives joining its board. The company also recruited seasoned professionals from Netflix, Paramount, and HBO Max to spearhead film, television, and music projects based on its intellectual properties.

In October 2022, Riot acquired Wargaming Sydney—known for MMO middleware BigWorld—excluding rights to the underlying technology or publishing assets; the studio was subsequently renamed Riot Sydney.

January 2023 saw layoffs affecting 46 employees amid a cyberattack that compromised source code for several games; stolen data was reportedly offered for sale on dark web marketplaces for $700,000. That year also featured new releases under Riot Forge such as The Mageseeker and Song of Nunu. Dylan Jadeja was appointed CEO in September 2023.

In January 2024, Riot announced workforce reductions impacting roughly 530 employees (approximately 11% of staff), alongside discontinuing both Riot Forge and its Twitch rival platform Riot Esports Network. CEO Jadeja stressed these measures were strategic decisions aimed at long-term priorities rather than short-term shareholder appeasement. Subsequently in May 2024, Riot became involved in litigation connected to its partnership with bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX over unrecoverable financial losses.

By June 2025, after facing significant development obstacles including an engine rewrite and delayed beta testing, Riot closed Hypixel Studios and canceled the ambitious project Hytale. Hypixel’s CEO attributed closure to an inability to complete the game aligning with its original vision.

Esports

Riot Games manages worldwide esports competitions, including the League of Legends Championship Series, which comprises regional leagues across North America, Europe, and twelve additional territories, featuring more than 100 participating teams. The competitive calendar is split into two segments known as splits, where teams accumulate championship points to secure spots in key tournaments such as the Mid-Season Invitational and the annual League of Legends World Championship.

Originating between 2010 and 2011, Riot identified the commercial potential within esports audiences and launched professional leagues with consistent weekly broadcasts and organized scheduling. The company elevated its tournaments into premier sporting spectacles by investing heavily in broadcast technology and enhancing the professionalism of player appearances. Early events offered significant prize money—for example, a $1 million prize at the 2012 University of Southern California competition. Later championships took place in iconic venues like Madison Square Garden and the Staples Center.

Riot’s revenue streams encompass corporate sponsorships, merchandise sales, and streaming rights. Since 2015, outside investors have purchased stakes in teams and formed new rosters; prominent owners include executives from NBA and MLB franchises, AOL co-founder Steve Case, and motivational speaker Tony Robbins. This high-profile involvement contributed to Riot being named Inc.'s Company of the Year in 2016. Responding to industry feedback, Riot raised revenue shares for professional players and strengthened cooperation with teams starting in 2016.

In 2017, Riot introduced a franchising model for its North American League of Legends Championship Series, requiring a $10 million buy-in per team. That same year, the World Championship finals were hosted in Beijing, China. Broadening its esports offerings, Riot unveiled the global Valorant Champions Tour in November 2020.

To scale production capabilities, Riot established three "remote broadcast centers" across Asia, North America (Seattle), and Europe (Dublin) beginning in 2021. These hubs enable centralized yet regionally synchronized esports broadcasts across different time zones. The Dublin facility opened in July 2022 within a converted nightclub space equipped with advanced IP-based broadcasting infrastructure.

In August 2021, Riot secured a seven-year sponsorship agreement with cryptocurrency exchange FTX for its League of Legends competitions. After FTX declared bankruptcy in November 2022, Riot initiated legal proceedings to terminate this partnership.

Allegations over gender discrimination and sexual harassment

In early 2018, Kotaku published reports from approximately 28 past and present Riot Games employees alleging gender bias within the company. These claims included female employees’ ideas being dismissed and women being overlooked for promotions in favor of male colleagues. The workplace was characterized as having a "bro culture," with accusations of inappropriate conduct such as sharing explicit content and sexist conversations among senior staff members. This environment was linked to Riot’s focus on "core" gamers, which often resulted in hiring predominantly male staff.

Riot acknowledged these problems; corporate communications lead Joe Hixson stated that such behavior conflicted with company principles and emphasized accountability measures. Efforts to improve diversity had already begun before the report’s release. Following additional employee testimonies, Riot implemented seven initiatives aimed at cultural reform, including launching a dedicated Diversity & Inclusion Initiative and appointing Frances X. Frei as senior adviser on diversity and leadership.

Additionally, Riot organized a résumé review event exclusively for women and non-binary individuals at PAX West 2018 to support underrepresented groups pursuing careers in game development; this event received mixed feedback and some criticism. After a shooting incident at a gaming event, Riot enhanced security protocols at their events. Two employees who publicly supported the PAX event subsequently left the company; Riot clarified these departures were unrelated to their Diversity Initiative.

In December 2018, CEO Nicolo Laurent announced that COO Scott Gelb was suspended without pay due to workplace misconduct following an internal investigation. Early in 2019, Riot revised its company values to address toxic workplace culture and hired Angela Roseboro as chief diversity officer to lead inclusion efforts.

Beginning late 2018, multiple lawsuits were filed against Riot alleging gender discrimination and a hostile work environment; these sought class-action status along with damages related to pay disparities and workplace conditions. Riot attempted to dismiss some claims based on arbitration agreements. Employee dissatisfaction led to threats of walkouts over transparency issues.

A proposed $10 million settlement was reached in August 2019 for affected female employees; however, California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) criticized this amount as inadequate, estimating damages could reach $400 million. The DFEH also accused Riot of withholding documents during investigations; Riot denied these allegations. Subsequently, the class withdrew the settlement offer and changed legal representation early in 2020.

By late 2021, Riot agreed to a $100 million settlement with DFEH and employees—allocating $80 million directly to impacted workers—which was approved in July 2022. Over 1,500 female employees are expected to receive compensation ranging from $2,500 up to $40,000 each.

In January 2021, CEO Nicolo Laurent faced a sexual discrimination lawsuit filed by his former assistant alleging inappropriate behavior; an internal board inquiry found no evidence supporting these claims.

Amid ongoing litigation concerns related to sexual harassment allegations, Alienware ended its sponsorship of Riot’s League of Legends esports events in March 2021.

Controversy over mandatory arbitration clauses

In the wake of a gender discrimination lawsuit, Riot encountered employee backlash concerning the compulsory forced arbitration provisions embedded in employment agreements. The company permitted employees to engage anonymously with the media and organized town hall sessions featuring senior executives to address these issues. Riot pledged to eliminate mandatory arbitration from new contracts and potentially from existing ones once ongoing legal proceedings concluded. In May 2019, the company initiated a 90-day strategy aimed at enhancing diversity and inclusion. Nevertheless, more than 100 employees participated in a walkout demanding an immediate cessation of forced arbitration for both current and former personnel. Roughly two weeks later, Riot reversed its position, opting not to modify forced arbitration clauses in existing contracts while litigation remained active.

Freedom of speech

Amid the 2019–2020 protests in Hong Kong, Riot Games imposed restrictions on political expressions during live events, citing a duty to prevent exacerbation of sensitive matters on their platforms. To preserve impartiality, the company prohibited explicit political, religious, and other sensitive remarks during broadcasts.

In 2019, Riot implemented censorship of politically charged terms such as Tiananmen and Uyghur within League of Legends, with variations dependent on server location and language settings. Following user feedback on Reddit, some of these limitations were subsequently eased.

George Floyd incident

In June 2020, Ron Johnson, who was the global head of consumer products at Riot Games, shared a contentious Facebook post attributing George Floyd’s death to his "criminal lifestyle." Riot responded by placing Johnson on administrative leave pending an inquiry, after which he tendered his resignation.

Partnership with Saudi Arabian city

In July 2020, Riot revealed a sponsorship agreement with Neom, a developing city in Saudi Arabia, to support the League of Legends European Championship series. This announcement provoked criticism from fans and Riot employees alike due to Saudi Arabia's human rights concerns and the forced displacement of the Howeitat tribe related to Neom’s development. Within days, Riot withdrew from the partnership and issued an apology for the hasty decision.

Marketing centered on character’s mental health challenges

Riot attracted criticism for promoting a new League of Legends champion, Seraphine, via an in-character Twitter account that highlighted her experiences with mental health issues including low self-esteem, anxiety, and impostor syndrome. Critics contended this strategy emotionally manipulated players as a marketing device. Creative director Patrick Morales recognized the campaign’s unintended effects while expressing pride in his team’s efforts.

Reaction to Russian invasion of Ukraine

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Riot Games opted against withdrawing from the Russian market despite appeals from Ukrainian official Mykhailo Fedorov. In March 2022, Riot contributed proceeds from battle passes and selected in-game items amounting to $5.4 million toward humanitarian aid efforts in Ukraine according to company statements.

Litigation

In 2017, Riot Games initiated legal action against Moonton Technology Co., the creator of Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, accusing them of copyright violation due to resemblances with League of Legends. The U.S. lawsuit was initially dismissed on grounds of forum non conveniens, yet Tencent, Riot's parent company, prevailed in a Chinese court decision in July 2018, obtaining $2.9 million in compensation.

Later, in October 2019, Riot Games pursued a trademark infringement case against the Chicago-based esports entity Riot Squad Esports LLC for unauthorized use of the name "Riot."

Games

Year	Title	Genre(s)	Platform(s)	Template:Refh
2009	League of Legends	Multiplayer online battle arena	macOS, Windows
2019	Teamfight Tactics	Auto battler	Android, iOS, macOS, Windows	rowspan="3" Template:Centered
2020	League of Legends: Wild Rift	Multiplayer online battle arena	Android, iOS
	Legends of Runeterra	Digital collectible card game	Android, iOS, Windows
	Valorant	First-person shooter	PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S	Template:Centered
2024	Golden Spatula	Auto battler	Android, iOS
Template:Dtba	LoL Esports Manager	Simulation	Android, iOS, Windows	Template:Centered
	2XKO	Fighting	PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox Series X/S	rowspan="2" Template:Centered
	Project F	Action role-playing, hack and slash	rowspan="2" Template:TBA
	Unknown	MMORPG	Template:Centered

Minigames

Year	Title	Genre(s)	Platform(s)	Developer(s)
2013	Astro Teemo	Arcade	Browser	Pure Bang Games
2014	Cho'Gath Eats the World
2015	Blitzcrank's Poro Roundup		Android, iOS
2017	Ziggs Arcade Blast		Windows	Riot Games
2018	Star Guardian: Insomnia	Shoot 'em up
	Project.execute
	Super Zac Ball	Sports

Riot Forge

Year	Title	Developer	Genre(s)	Platform(s)
2021	Ruined King	Airship Syndicate	Role-playing	Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One
	Hextech Mayhem	Choice Provisions	Rhythm	Nintendo Switch, Windows
2023	Convergence	Double Stallion	Action platformer	PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Windows
	Song of Nunu	Tequila Works	Adventure	PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, Windows
	The Mageseeker	Digital Sun	Pixel art action RPG	Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4/5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S
2024	Bandle Tale	Lazy Bear Games	Role-playing farming simulation	Nintendo Switch, Windows

Tabletop games

Riot Games ventured into physical gaming in October 2016 with the release of Mechs vs. Minions, a cooperative tabletop experience inspired by League of Legends. Expanding its offerings under the Riot Tabletop label, the company introduced Tellstones: King's Gambit in 2020—a bluffing game designed for two to four participants—broadening its range beyond digital titles.