Champions are the player-controlled characters in League of Legends; there are currently more than 140 champions players can choose from, with the game’s first lesbian champion, Neeko, introduced in 2018.
Now DeObia Oparei, who has starred in Sex Education and Game of Thrones, has announced that K’Sante will be the game’s first Black and LGBTQ+ champion.
“I’m excited to give life and voice to K’Sante and make history portraying the first LGBTQ Black champion warrior,” he said on Twitter.
Esports magazine ONE eSports added that the character is likely to be available in the game, which is played by around 117 million people every month, from November.
“Known as the Pride of Nazumah, K’Sante will be coming out this month, coinciding with the ongoing 2022 World Championship,” the outlet wrote.
“He will join the roster of top lane champions as a tank with an expectedly high skill cap.”
I’m excited to give life and voice to K’Sante and make history portraying the first LGBTQ black Champion Warrior @LeagueOfLegends pic.twitter.com/yCVvtZXCTe
— DeObia Oparei (@DeObia) October 13, 2022
In May of this year, professional League of Legends player Vincent “Biofrost” Wang came out as gay on social media, calling for greater inclusivity in gaming and esports.
Wang explained that not only had he gone through homophobia and bullying at school, but that he had experienced workplace homophobia while in the gaming industry.
“On almost every team I’ve been on, I’ve heard homophobic comments from either my teammates or the staff and felt uncomfortable, even borderline afraid of possibly losing my job if I told the truth,” he said.
“I’m at a point in my life where I’ve accepted who I am, and it’s taken me a long time to get there.”
He added that “sexism, prejudice and homophobia” are “rampant” within the gaming industry and that gamers should be “holding ourselves to a higher standard” going forward.