The new 2XKO news was revealed live during a live panel at Evo 2024 hosted by executive producer Tom Cannon and game director Shaun Rivera. In it, Tom Cannon revealed some preliminary details on how the free-to-play game will be monetized.
“You can become the best player in the world for free without spending a dime!” Cannon exclaimed at the beginning of his speech. Moments later, he revealed that all fighters would be available for free in the game (while noting that it would take some effort). However, Cannon also talked about how Riot plans to make money as part of that model.
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“We’ll sell you something. But when we sell you something, it’s going to be of very high quality,” Cannon noted. For example, stickers and skins for various champions making emotes (think Legends of Runeterra)! In fact, the pair even showed off a new Ahri Dynasty skin and showed off a few seconds of gameplay. According to Cannon, the skin’s model and visual effects have changed, and all skins will have a standard selection of nine shades (Riot’s term for palette changes).
Cannon also noted that this Ahri skin will be unlocked through the game’s first battle pass during an upcoming alpha lab playtest, which appears to be running alongside the initial test. All in all, this monetization system feels a lot like League of Legends’ approach, although pricing and further details remain unclear.
What are your thoughts on this approach? Do you like it, or do you prefer the non-live service angle? Let us know below!
