Meta discussion/state of the game currently

[Atlas]

LoL core gameplay is really good. That's what has kept people playing this game for years. There is very little content, but it is enjoyable to play.

Agreed.

I think the idea of the meta game being stagnant is an outdated concept. The roles are as much part of the game as anything else. This whole genre of video games was created by the players. It started as a Warcraft mod. Beginning of LoL didn't have the roles we know today, but at one point players started playing with those roles almost exclusively. It became part of the game, and today it's standard. Those roles are recognized by Riot and they balance the game around them. There is enough variance in games to keep the gameplay fun, which is why millions of people keep playing on the same map, the same game mode, the same roles, where every game has a laning phase and a team fighting phase etc.

Perhaps it is so ingrained into the game that it can't be untangled.

People will be quitting LoL because playing ANY game for years will eventually make you tired of it, even if there's nothing essentially wrong with it and it's still fun. I can't agree with the idea that Riot is rapidly bleeding players due to the top/mid/jungler/adc/support model.

True playing any game will eventually become boring. I don't know if LoL is "rapidly" losing players or not.

My argument is simple though, multiple paths to victory create more replay-ability. LoL's replay-ability is limited by its stagnant meta. The sameness (map, mode, roles, game phases) makes the game stagnate sooner for players. People like new games and challenges, LoL loses that in its current model. Almost every player will rapidly concentrate on 1-2 roles increasing the rate of stagnation of the game for the individual. Realms Beyond exists to a large degree b/c games become stagnant and it became desirable to play variants.

Riot does a lot of things right and a lot of that makes up for the lack of multiple paths to victory. Riot's connectivity is excellent, their bug/balance fixes are also fantastic.

I only see LoL as long term viable if it can become the "American Football" of e-sports. Where the pro scene drives the amateur scene and that in turn drives the pro scene in a virtuous circle. Otherwise the game with wither and die.

So to get back to Terror's question:

Are you happier playing the current game or past seasons of it? If so, why?

I enjoyed 2010/2011. I liked it when large strategic changes and innovations were occurring. The more the meta becomes entrenched the more the game devolves to mechanics, which I find to be like some of the old Nintendo games where you just memorized your way through the game, beat it and moved on.

Hopefully Riot can survive the loss of LoL since I think they really do put players first.