Principal Software Engineer - League of Legends, UI Tooling

League of Legends virtual k-pop group K/DA reemerge after 6 years of silence with new single and music video from the makers of Arcane. Hot. After six years of silence, Riot Games' League of Legends-themed virtual K-pop girl group, K/DA, has returned with Firestarter, a comeback single created by the animation studio behind Arcane. The single leads K/DA's new EP, set to come out on October 21, which would mark the group's second major release since All Out in 2020. Returning to the lineup are MIYEON and SOYEON of i-dle, alongside Sophie Powers and Mimi Webb who bring new voices to K/DA's latest era. The group has previously featured artists including Madison Beer and Jaira Burns, while Seraphine, who joined the virtual girl group for More in 2020 and was voiced by Lexie Liu, is notably absent from the new release. Behind the track are producers Kill Dave and Sebastien Najand, the composer and producer often regarded as one of the architects of K/DA's sound, having worked on the group's music since its inception. Behind Firestarter's music video is Fortiche, the French animation studio whose long-standing partnership with Riot dates back to the original Pop/Stars video in 2018. Since then, the two companies have built a creative partnership that extends well beyond music videos, most notably with Arcane, the acclaimed animated series set in the League of Legends universe. With Fortiche involved, the quality of the animation was never really in doubt - and the studio delivers once again. Originally scheduled for release on Tuesday, October 20, Firestarter arrived as a surprise drop one day earlier, reportedly following leaks teasing the group's return. The result is a spark that has already turned into a wildfire, with the music video surpassing 4.3 million views on YouTube alone in just nine hours. It's been a particularly busy year for Riot Games' musical universe with three new songs released in less than a month. Heartsteel returned with Live My Life, True Damage made a comeback with Know My Name, marking a milestone for Riot's virtual bands as the first to deliver a League of Legends Worlds anthem. Add a collaboration with Pentakill on the orchestral Worlds theme, and K/DA were the last of Riot's major virtual groups yet to re-enter the spotlight. Teasers released last week made it clear that the wait was almost over, and now the final piece of the musical puzzle is back in place. A match made in animation Heaven. Fortiche's signature hybrid approach, blending 3D CGI with hand-painted textures and hand-drawn 2D elements, gives Firestarter a visual identity that feels both real and ideal. The meticulous, almost obsessive details and hidden references are exactly what fans have come to expect from the studio. League players will easily recognize in-game abilities woven into the choreography - like Ahri's charm or ult - yet these nods never feel forced or overwhelming to viewers unfamiliar with the game. A music video this saturated with color could easily become visually exhausting, but Fortiche knows when to pull back. Brief, single-frame visual disruptions break up the dominant pink and orange palette, while infrared-inspired sections make the characters appear to radiate heat. Reflections shimmer in the oil-slick ground beneath the characters, and particles of light seem to bring the heat straight through the screen. Every frame feels planned, building toward a visual spectacle that reflects years of creative collaboration. Catchy beats, fashion, and ballroom choreography. Musically, Firestarter knows exactly how to get under your skin. Built around a catchy rhythm and punchy rap sections, the track constantly plays with contrasts, breaking up its harder-hitting moments with melodic, almost ethereal, pre-choruses that make the chorus hit all the harder when it finally explodes. It is a satisfying build-up that keeps the song moving, balancing fiery attitude with melody and making the hook all the more contagious. Beyond the animation, great visual composition extends to costumes and choreography. Every look reinforces the members' personalities, each outfit worthy of high-fashion magazine covers - and it would hardly be surprising to see K/DA gracing those pages again. The choreography, meanwhile, seems inspired by drag ballroom culture, combining sharp poses, commanding gestures and theatrical flair into something utterly mesmerizing. It is bold, precise and unapologetically larger than life, the kind of performance that demands your attention even when everything else is already filling your senses. With Firestarter, K/DA reminds us why they became one of the most recognisable virtual acts in pop culture. Riot Games and Fortiche have reunited to deliver a music video packed with visual ambition, while the track itself strikes a balance between fan service and mainstream appeal. Get the tools to beat your game. IGN Plus members get full access to all of IGN's maps and wikis, get to browse IGN ad free, and more. Try it today for as low at $2.49 a month.

Louis Vuitton and Riot Games publish new travel book, Tempo Point, starring K/DA's members. * by Jolie Feld * October 19, 2026 * 3 min Join independent journalists and industry decision-makers at GamesBeat NEXT, returning to San Francisco November 2-3. The event brings together 500 executives, founders, investors and tech leaders shaping the $200 billion interactive economy for candid discussions on gaming, entertainment, technology and AI, plus executive networking and opportunities to build partnerships and close major deals. K/DA just launched its very own Louis Vuitton travel book. Riot Games and the luxury house published Tempo Point Friday, imagining 24 hours in the lives of the virtual pop group's four members. Carol Reed, Shahar Sorek & Bryce Showalter: Proving the ROI of Games | Full GB Insider Conversation Tempo Point is the latest addition to Louis Vuitton's Travel Book collection and the third Riot-Louis Vuitton collaboration since 2019, according to the announcement. The standard edition costs $68, and a collector's edition limited to 400 copies costs $245. Tempo Point imagines 24 hours in the individual lives of K/DA members Ahri, Akali, Evelynn and Kai'Sa. The book will feature Ahri and Evelynn as vocalists, Akali as a rapper, and Kai'Sa as a vocalist, the lead dancer, and a choreographer. According to the press release from Riot and Louis Vuitton, the book is trilingual, containing English, French, and Chinese. Both main editions of Tempo Point are being sold as cloth-bound hardcover books, with six-color printing and a silk-screened cover. The standard edition of Tempo Point is being priced at $68. Copies of the book are available for purchase on Louis Vuitton's website, as well as in its stores and in select bookstores around the globe. The book will also be sold at the League of Legends Worlds 2026 Fan Fest in New York. The Collector's Large-Format edition of the book will be limited to only 400 copies and, can be purchased for $245. This special edition is also sold online, in stores and in select bookstores. Riot and Louis Vuitton have also released a limited edition of 30 signed and numbered copies, complete with an exclusive vinyl record. This limited edition of the book will be sold only in select Louis Vuitton stores. It's leather-bound in a slipcase, and the price is available to the public only on request. Tempo Point will be joining Louis Vuitton's larger collection of travel books, designed by a diverse array of artists from around the globe. A number of artists are named as illustrators that worked on this specific book: Ayşe Aktaş and Florent Auguy (courtesy of Fortiche Production), Jason Chan, Aliya Chen, Edgar Flores, Gintas Galvanauskas, Artyom Maksimishin (courtesy of Goodname Studio), Alisha Gao, Greg Ghielmetti, HC Lemon (courtesy of Lemon Art Studio), ilLUMI, Kaye Kang, Mindy Kang, Minji Kim, Alsie Lau, Shawn Lee, Jacki Li, MengXuan Li, David Merritt, Liu Mingchao (courtesy of Grafit Studio), Airi Pan, Valentina Remenar, Mintautas Šukys, Maryia Tarasenka and Vladislav Varlamov (courtesy of Grafit Studio), Jennifer Wuestling, Mo Yan, Min Yum. The center characters of Tempo Point are the members of K/DA, a virtual pop supergroup within League of Legends. The group's name is a reference to the game's shorthand for kills, deaths, and assists. The group first debuted in 2018 with the song "POP/STARS" and released the "ALL OUT" EP shortly after. According to Riot, the group has now garnered over 2.7 billion global streams and 1.8 billion video views, and "POP/STARS" has gone RIAA platinum. Tempo Point isn't the first project that Louis Vuitton and Riot have collaborated on. The brands first formed a partnership and worked together in 2019. Louis Vuitton served as the official Summoner's Cup Trophy Trunk provider for the League of Legends World Championship. Nicolas Ghesquière, Louis Vuitton's artistic director of women's collections, designed in-game skins for the champions of the cup, Qiyana and Senna. Following this, Louis Vuitton released a capsule collection of more than 40 products, including apparel, bags and accessories. In 2020, Louis Vuitton also dressed K/DA and Seraphine for pre-concert promotions. Seraphine, another League of Legends character, is featured on K/DA's single "MORE." Lexie Liu, the singer who voiced Seraphine on the song, wore Louis Vuitton when she performed with K/DA at the Worlds Opening Ceremony. League of Legends is one of the most-played PC games in the world, according to Riot. Since the game's launch in 2009, Riot has expanded the game's IP across art-forms and merchandise, including music, comic books, board games and the animated series Arcane. Tempo Point is available now on louisvuitton.com and at the stores and events above.