Riot Games revealed its visual and gameplay update (VGU) for Udyr in League of Legends Friday, complete with a new trailer and developer blog post showcasing the progress that’s been made on the Spirit Walker since entering full production.
In February 2021, Riot announced Udyr overwhelmingly won the vote to be the next champion to receive a VGU. Eight months later, Riot teased some of Udyr’s upcoming changes, outlining its goals and points of exploration regarding his gameplay, art and narrative design.
Thanks to this latest reveal, the full first look at the rework is finally here.
Life is in the struggle, not the victory. Fight by instinct with Udyr, the Spirit Walker. pic.twitter.com/JjLJwIqXnE
— League of Legends (@LeagueOfLegends) August 5, 2022
“With the ability to commune with any and all of the spirits of the Freljord, Udyr channels and transforms their ethereal energy into his own wild physical fighting style,” Udyr’s new bio reads. “Through his growing mastery of this awe-inspiring and versatile power, Udyr seeks to maintain the balance of the Freljord’s mystical landscape, where conflict and struggle is its lifesblood… and where sacrifices must be made to keep peace at bay.”
On the visual side of things, Udyr’s base body and proportions are said to still be a work-in-progress, but slowly getting closer to the final look and feel of Riot’s goal: a big, strong mountain man.
Gameplay-wise, the trailer shows off Udyr’s four revised, distinct stances — Bear, Ram, Boar and Phoenix — which not only showcase their update effects, but also serve to tie in the Spirit Walker closer to the other champions of the Freljord.
Sadly, Riot has yet to reveal a timeline for when we can expect the Udyr VGU to launch as there’s still plenty of work to do on his skins aside from his base, but players can likely expect the long-anticipated rework to arrive in-game in the coming months.
