League of Legends to punish 'toxicity' with ban on loot

Among the big changes coming to League of Legends' 2016 season is a new "chest and key" loot system. Keys or key fragments will be ladled out at the end of every won match, which you'll use to unlock chests containing rented or permanent access to skins and champions. That'll be available some time in 2016, unless you're a player deemed toxic by League of Legends' community guidelines. If that's the case, you won't have access to the system at all.

"We've never been able to give skins for free before in League of Legends, so this is our way of saying, 'Hey, if you're a positive player in the game, here's your way of earning something just for playing the game and being awesome.'"

This is the first time Riot has locked out a whole system in the game to toxic players, with ranked play and voice chat bannings among the most common disciplinary measures. The company's efforts to curb the community's toxic elements are numerous and well documented. For more on what to expect of the 2016 season, Tom Marks has you sorted.

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.