Riftbound, a fresh collectible card game from the creators of League of Legends, Riot Games, has revealed plans for its English language debut towards the close of October.
Responding to an inquiry from a fan via social media, the official Riftbound X profile mentioned that the TCG’s initial launch will be in China during August.
Originally announced in December of 2024, Riftbound is a trading card game drawing inspiration from Riot Games’ widely acclaimed esports title, League of Legends. Over the preceding months, the game has been accessible for trial gameplay at various Riot hosted events, encompassing this year’s MSI 2025, which took place in Canada.
Furthermore, Riot Games has disseminated documentation covering the TCG’s rules, unveiled its inaugural set called — Origins — and confirmed a publishing agreement with UVS Games.
The planned launch timeframe somewhat aligns with prior statements from the Riftbound group, which consistently indicated that China, a significantly popular market for League of Legends, would be the initial release location.
Previously, Riot Games articulated that Riftbound was projected to launch in China during the Summer of 2025. English-speaking nations were anticipated to follow in the latter portion of the year, alongside further launches planned for 2026.
Riot Games’ IP Expansion
The forthcoming debut of Riftbound signifies Riot Games’ ongoing diversification of its League of Legends IP into a different sector.
This follows on the heels of successes such as the animated TV series Arcane and the mockumentary Players, each of which embraced components of Riot Games’ League of Legends and esports landscapes, respectively. Riot Games itself has equally branched into diverse avenues of the entertainment industry, notably in music production by crafting original ‘anthems’ for its various esports events.
Riftbound enters a densely populated TCG market, although it does possess the advantage of a solid brand IP due to League of Legends’ popularity as a game franchise and beyond. Mirroring Riot Games’ additional properties, which encompass Teamfight Tactics and VALORANT, the TCG will also feature a competitive emphasis. This is thoroughly explored in UVS Games’ documentation on ‘organised play,’ which outlines regional qualifiers and a potential world championship event.
