Today, Riot Games released a brand new cinematic trailer for League of Legends’ fiery young champion, Annie. The Annie: Origins trailer is as visually-striking as it is tragic, illustrating a hand-painted, emotionally charged backstory for one of League’s original six champions. You can watch Annie’s emotional origin story in the video below.
The Annie: Origins trailer sheds light on what made Annie transition from an innocent young girl into the Dark Child of League. Without going to deep into spoiler territory, the trailer delves into Annie’s relationship with her family, as well as her connection with her signature stuffed bear, Tibbers.
Recently, Riot has been committed to constructing more mature and compelling stories for their champions. This new creative direction gave rise to today’s origin trailer for Annie, as well as the heartfelt music video for League champion Varus.
“I hope that when players watch this, it creates a connection with the character and emotions that really make you feel for her,” said Anthony Possobon, the Creative Director of Art at Riot Games.
Many of Riot’s animated trailers offer a mixture of spectacular visuals and poignant backstories. Annie’s trailer was the result of some experimentation on the part of Riot’s artistic team. The goal was to try to recreate the gripping quality of hand-painted art without having to actually hand paint each frame. Using a mix of 2D and 3D techniques, Riot’s artists were able to capture the dark, dreamlike setting of Annie’s past.
The Annie: Origins trailer is sure to resonate with League fans and newcomers alike. Let us know what you thought of Annie’s origin story in the comments.
Published: Feb 2, 2018 12:15 am