Since 2009, League of Legends has been a dominant force in esports, ranking among the top MOBA games. But now, developer Riot Games wants to expand the League magic to another competitive genre—fighting games—with 2XKO, a free-to-play, 2v2 tag-team title set in the League of Legends universe. Before you trade your mouse for your fight stick, see if your PC has the minimum system specs to join the fray.
Release Date, Price, and Platforms
Formerly known as Project L, 2XKO launches on PC (directly from Riot), PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on Jan. 20. It’s a free-to-play game, so you don’t need to spend money to get in on the action. Major fighting games like Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves and Tekken 8 are full-priced releases, typically costing $60-$70. On top of that, you’ll pay extra money for additional individual characters and season passes over the games’ lifespans. So, 2XKO’s pricing model is incredibly unique for the genre and may attract a large player base since there’s no price barrier to entry.
Optional paid cosmetics are available for the 11-character roster, which includes rush-down fighters, grapplers, and zoners. However, you can unlock characters using 2XKO’s in-game currency.
What’s the Story Behind 2XKO?
There are plenty of reasons to care about 2XKO. A new fighting game is always an exciting occasion, and 2XKO’s connection to League of Legends gives it the brand recognition to compete with established franchises like Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter. 2XKO also has serious talent behind it, including Tom Cannon and Seth Killian, two of the founders of the Evo fighting game tournament.
The game’s roots lie in the now-defunct Rising Thunder, an attempt to make fighting games more accessible to newcomers (a title eventually purchased by Riot Games). We’ll see if that approach carries into 2XKO’s fast-paced gameplay.
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Gameplay Mechanics
League of Legends fans will appreciate 2XKO’s roster, which includes Jinx and Vi, both of whom appeared in the Netflix animated series Arcane. However, even people unfamiliar with the League of Legends universe will see how 2XKO puts its own twists on the tag-team fighting formula.
Your team consists of a Point character and an Assists character that you can strategically swap between during battle. Along with normal and special attacks (using simple directional inputs instead of complex motion inputs), the Fuse system offers special perks for specific team combinations. In fact, you can combine your super attacks together for a decisive blow.
Recommended by Our Editors
If you like team-based fighting games, such as The King of Fighters or the Marvel vs. Capcom series, 2XKO may be worth your time. After all, it won’t cost you a dime.
(Credit: Riot Games)
Minimum System Requirements
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OS: Windows 10 (64-bit)
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CPU: AMD FX9590 or Intel i7-4770
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Memory: 8GB RAM
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GPU: AMD Radeon R9 380 or Nvidia GeForce GTX 960
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Storage: 8GB available space
Recommended System Requirements
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OS: Windows 11 (64-bit)
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CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X or Intel i5-11400
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Memory: 16GB RAM
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GPU: AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT or Nvidia GeForce 1660 Ti
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Storage: 8GB available space
How Do You Play 2XKO?
As a fighting game, 2XKO is best played with a high-quality fight stick. However, with its emphasis on accessibility, a regular controller should also work just fine. 2XKO’s anti-cheat software prevents the game from running on the Steam Deck.
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About Our Expert
Jordan Minor
Senior Writer, Software
Experience
My PCMag career began in 2013 as an intern. Now, I’m a senior writer, using the skills I acquired at Northwestern University to write about dating apps, meal kits, programming software, website builders, video streaming services, and video games. I was previously a senior editor at Geek.com and have written for The A.V. Club, Kotaku, and Paste Magazine. I’m the author of the gaming history book Video Game of the Year: A Year-by-Year Guide to the Best, Boldest, and Most Bizarre Games from Every Year Since 1977, and the reason everything you know about Street Sharks is a lie.
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