Texas indie developer Spacetime Studios, known for MMO Pocket Legends, is jumping on the MOBA train, adding a mobile twist. Guess that makes upcoming project Call of Champions… a MOBAile.
Back in 2005, NCSoft gave Spacetime a more-or-less-blank check to make an MMO. Eventually the project was axed, but NCSoft allowed Spacetime to hang on to the fruits of their labor and use it for whatever. Years later, Spacetime’s rehashing this old tech – including a client server with enough power to rival the most established MOBAs – into Call of Champions.
The developers are bringing three professional League of Legends players on as design consultants: James Varga (PhantomL0rd), Joedat Esfahani (Voyboy), and Stephen Ellis (Snoopeh).
Don’t expect just a mobile ripoff of League of Legends; Spacetime is fully aware of the obstacles and creative constraints that come with adapting the depth of a game like LoL to a platform that demands snappier, more condensed gameplay. They’re looking to deliver all the strategy and stakes of a League game in each of Call of Champions’ five-minute matches.
The pro players are on board to help Spacetime understand what makes League of Legends an eSport giant so over time, Call of Champions will foster its own corner of eSports fandom.
Call of Champions enters a small, closed alpha soon, with a projected summer release. The developers have an ongoing Q&A thread on the Spacetime Studios forums where you can find more behind-the-scenes info on Call’s development — and you don’t need to be a member to take a read-through!
