Riot Games’ social systems lead designer departs

One of the figures leading the charge against abusive behaviour in League of Legends has left Riot Games.

Jeffrey Lin joined the MOBA creator in 2012, utilising his PhD in psychology and collaboration with other academics to introduce new measures aimed at reducing toxicity in the community.

Among the systems created by Lin and his team was the Tribunal, set up in 2011 to establish community rules and reprimand those who fail to stick to them.

They also contributed to League of Legends’ Team Builder, Honor Initative and LeaverBuster.

“Social design was pretty new in the games and tech industries, and exploring uncharted territory with you has been a thrilling experience,” Lin tweeted following the announcement of his departure.

“I’ve always believed that making League of Legends had to be a collaboration with the community. My friend Ghostcrawler and I have always said that passionate gamers, even angry ones, are gamers that care about the game – just like us.

“Keep giving feedback and working with Riot to make League last for another decade, so I can one day teach my future son how to play this crazy game.”

A recent study by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that Riot’s measures were having notable effects on stamping out abuse in the game’s community, with an automated notification system halving toxic behaviour.