Riftbound, the League of Legends trading card game (TCG), maintained a notable presence at the recent Gen Con, offering fans access to exclusive merchandise and opportunities to meet the game's creators. However, game director Dave Guskin revealed in an interview that the team behind the popular TCG is significantly smaller than its public profile might suggest.
"It's been so wonderful to have the community grow around the game, and see what people love," Guskin stated. "I always say, our team is quite small compared to the player base. So we rely on that partnership between development and community to figure out what's awesome, what's not, and how to fix it."
Guskin elaborated on the game's origins, explaining that initial development involved a core group of only three people: himself, his boss, and an analyst, who were pitching the game concept to executives. "And they were like, 'Just give us a chance.' And they were like, 'Okay, you can have two more people.' So then we made the systems and we tested with players [with just five people]," he recalled.
As development progressed, Riot Games gradually expanded the Riftbound team. Guskin described the growth as substantial from their initial startup, yet still comparatively small. "But it's still like less than 50 people across all functions of Riftbound, which is sort of crazy," he said. He attributes this lean operational model to a "scrappy place" mentality, focusing on creating a high-quality experience for players efficiently. The development strategy involved drawing inspiration from existing Riot titles like Legends of Runeterra and other strategy games within the company, as well as leveraging the expertise of those familiar with League of Legends champion design, to expedite the release and subsequent iteration process.
Riftbound has recently launched its fourth expansion, Vendetta. The game is also continuing its biannual State of the Game updates, with the current series running until August 5, detailing upcoming changes to game rules, card templates, and outlining the roadmap for 2027.