Riot dev explains why LoL’s best ability has never been nerfed

Riot Games’ lead designer August Browning recently opened up about a pivotal moment in League of Legends’ early development: the heated internal debate over whether to remove Flash, the game’s most iconic summoner spell.

The revelation came through a recent video where August, known for designing fan-favorite champions like Jinx, Vi, and Ekko, recalled how close the game once came to losing one of its core mechanics. According to August, Flash was seen as an overpowered mechanic that distorted summoner spell balance during the game’s formative years. “Flash was OP and there’s a flash conversation with the designers about removing it,” he said.

The team believed it was impossible to properly tune the spell, fearing that its dominance would eliminate meaningful choice from the summoner spell system. “It was just like, hey, this is too OP, there’s no way to really balance it, so it needs to be removed so that there’s real choices in the summoner spell system so that not everyone just has flash,” August recalled.

The debate shifted dramatically when another designer, identified by August as “the designer who made Lux,” asked a simple but powerful question: “Hey, well, is the game not better with flash?” August recounted how that single question reframed the entire discussion.

“We’re talking about removing it for all these reasons: choice in summoner spells, making sure not everybody has a dash, but let’s ask the opposite question: is the game better when everybody has this flashy, dashy thing?” That moment changed everything. The team ultimately agreed that Flash made League far more exciting to play and watch, even if it undermined theoretical design purity.

“The answer that was come to was yes, the game is significantly better and more enjoyable,” August said, emphasizing that player enjoyment took priority over strict balance principles. He admitted, “While Flash does compete against things like summoner spell choice and a character like Twitch never having a dash, the other end of that thing is good games.”

Today, Flash remains the most-used summoner spell in League of Legends, offering a 400-unit instant blink with a 300-second cooldown. It’s essential for both aggressive outplays and last-second escapes, used by nearly every champion across all roles. Discussions about whether Flash should remain optional or become a built-in mechanic continue within the community, but the reasoning behind its permanence is now clear.

As August concluded, “The game is just more fun, more exciting, more enjoyable with flash in it.” His story underscores the philosophy that fun and player experience often matter more than strict balance. This early design decision ensured that one simple spell became an enduring symbol of what makes the game thrilling over a decade later.