If you binged both seasons of the hit Netflix animated series Arcane and found yourself obsessing over Vi, Jinx, and the tense war between the glittering utopia of Piltover and the gritty undercity of Zaun, you've probably typed "is arcane based off of league of legends" into Google at least once. I get it, I did the exact same thing 10 minutes after finishing the season 2 finale, right before I downloaded League of Legends for the first time and got completely destroyed by a level 30 smurf in my first ever bot game. This guide breaks down every connection between the two properties, what parts of the show are official League of Legends canon, what details were changed for the small screen, and what you need to know if you want to jump from watching Arcane to playing League of Legends for the first time.
Is Arcane Based Off of League of Legends? The Short Answer
The short, unambiguous answer is yes. Arcane was developed and produced directly by Riot Games, the same studio that created and continues to run League of Legends, and it is set entirely in Runeterra, the shared fantasy universe that all League of Legends content is built around. It's not a loose adaptation or a spin-off that borrows character names with no connection to the source material. Every core element of the show, from hextech crystals to the political tension between Piltover and Zaun, is pulled directly from lore that Riot has been building for more than 14 years.
I first picked up on this connection within the first 10 minutes of the show's pilot episode, when Vi pulls out her iconic massive metal gauntlets to fight a group of enforcers. I recognized those gauntlets immediately from the hundreds of League of Legends loading screens I'd watched my little brother sit through when we were teens, even though I'd never actually played the game myself at that point. Riot didn't cut corners to make the show appeal to a wider audience; they leaned hard into the existing League of Legends universe to make a story that feels authentic for both long-time fans and new viewers.
Key Arcane Characters That Exist in League of Legends
Nearly every major character you see in Arcane is a playable champion in League of Legends, and their core personalities, abilities, and motivations line up almost perfectly between the show and the game. Even smaller supporting characters that only get a few minutes of screen time are often existing champions that long-time players will recognize instantly. Some of the most popular Arcane characters you can play as in League of Legends include:
- Vi: The Piltover Enforcer is one of the most accessible top lane champions in League, with the same massive hextech gauntlets she uses in the show to punch through walls and take down groups of enemies. Her in-game voice lines have referenced her strained relationship with Jinx for years, long before Arcane ever entered production.
- Jinx: The Loose Cannon is a high-skill attack damage carry known for her chaotic playstyle that includes rocket launchers, miniguns, and explosive chompers, all of which make regular appearances across both seasons of Arcane. Her in-game voice lines are just as unhinged and playful as they are in the show.
- Caitlyn: The Sheriff of Piltover is a long-range attack damage carry who uses a custom-built hextech rifle, exactly like the one she carries in the show as she works to root out corruption in Piltover's ruling council. Her in-game abilities focus on long-range precision shots, which matches her reputation as the best marksman in the city.
- Ekko: The Boy Who Shattered Time is a mobile mid lane assassin with an ability that lets him rewind time to reverse damage and reposition in fights, a power we first see him experimenting with as a teen growing up in Zaun during Arcane's first season.
A few characters from the show, like Mel Medarda, haven't been added as playable champions in League of Legends yet, but Riot has teased that multiple Arcane-exclusive characters will join the game's champion roster in future updates. Even the show's most minor recurring characters, like the mad scientist Singed and the yordle inventor Heimerdinger, have been playable in League of Legends for more than a decade.
How Arcane Changed League of Legends Lore (And What's Still Canon)
Before Arcane premiered in 2021, League of Legends lore was scattered across short stories, champion bios, animated shorts, and occasional event narratives, with a lot of conflicting details about the histories of Piltover and Zaun. Riot used Arcane as an opportunity to clean up that messy lore and make the show the official, definitive source of canon for all stories set in those two regions. That meant making small retcons to a few existing champion backstories to line up with the events of the show, but the core of each champion's identity stayed the same through all of those changes.
For example, before Arcane, it was heavily implied that Vi and Jinx had a connected past, but it was never officially confirmed that they were sisters. Riot made that sibling relationship official canon after the show premiered, and updated both of their in-game bios to match the backstory shown in Arcane. Other small changes include adjustments to Caitlyn's family history and Ekko's exact age when he first invented his time rewind device, but none of those changes alter how the characters play or feel in the game.
You don't have to dig through 14 years of old lore to understand either the show or the game now. Arcane is designed to be the perfect starting point for anyone new to the League of Legends universe, and all new lore released for Piltover and Zaun will tie directly to the events of the show going forward. I tried reading through old champion bios back in 2018 and got so confused by conflicting details that I gave up, but Arcane makes all of that old messy lore make sense now.
What to Do If You Want to Play League After Watching Arcane
So you finished Arcane and immediately wanted to step into Vi's gauntlets or start blowing things up as Jinx? You're not alone. Riot reported that League of Legends saw a 20% increase in new player sign-ups in the month after Arcane season 1 premiered, most of them citing the show as their main reason for downloading the game. You don't have to play the champions you saw in Arcane first, but it's a fun way to ease into the game if you already feel connected to their stories.
If you do want to start with an Arcane character, Vi is one of the most beginner-friendly options, with a simple kit that focuses on punching enemies and soaking up damage, so you don't have to worry about perfect aim or complex ability combos right away. Jinx, on the other hand, is a high-skill ADC that requires a lot of practice to play well, so save her for after you've got a few games under your belt. Take advantage of the game's beginner mode for your first 10 to 20 games, it matches you with other new players and disables smurfs from joining your lobbies, so you won't get completely destroyed like I did in my first game.
There's way more lore to explore beyond Arcane if you get hooked, too. League of Legends has 13 other regions in Runeterra, each with their own champions, stories, and conflicts that haven't been featured in the show yet. You don't even have to play the game to engage with that lore, Riot regularly releases free comics, short stories, and animated shorts on their website that expand on the world of Runeterra for all fans, whether they play the game or not.
At the end of the day, if you were asking is arcane based off of league of legends, the answer is a resounding yes, and it's easily one of the most faithful video game adaptations ever released. It doesn't matter if you're a long-time League of Legends player who's been waiting over a decade to see Jinx and Vi's backstory brought to life on screen, or a new fan who has never touched a MOBA in your life, there's something for everyone in both the show and the wider Runeterra universe. Next time you're waiting for the next season of Arcane to drop, you can boot up League of Legends, try playing as Vi for a few games, and see if you can land that perfect ultimate ability just like she does in the show's most iconic fight scenes.