Riot Games has confirmed that "League of Legends" is finally getting a full team voice chat feature, marking a significant addition to a game that has run without one since its original 2009 launch.
The announcement came through a developer update video and an accompanying summary post, alongside details on several other upcoming changes to the game.
'League of Legends' Gets In-Game Voice Chat
For years, "League of Legends" players have had to rely on third-party apps like Discord to communicate with teammates outside of premade parties, since the game itself only ever supported voice chat between players who had already grouped up before a match began. That limitation is now changing, with Riot expanding voice functionality to let every player on a team talk to one another, regardless of whether they queued together.
Riot confirmed the update comes with a wide range of supporting tools designed to make the feature usable at scale.
These include improved noise cancellation, faster connection times, and greater overall stability, all aimed at making voice communication practical across millions of daily matches.
Team Voice Chat Arrives After 17 Years
Moderation was a central focus in how Riot approached building the feature. Access to speaking in team voice chat will be tied directly to a player's Honor level, giving Riot a built-in way to limit the feature for players with a history of toxic behavior. The studio said it plans to continue improving the Honor system more broadly so that it better reflects actual in-game conduct going forward.
Riot also confirmed that voice skins are being added alongside the core feature, letting players modify how their voice sounds during matches.
According to Riot, all current and future voice skins are being designed to remain clear and understandable even during chaotic teamfights, ensuring the cosmetic layer does not interfere with actual team communication when it matters most.
'LoL' Team Voice Chat Availability
Team voice chat is launching first in North America and Oceania, with Riot confirming those two regions will be the starting point once the feature goes live in Patch 26.20. The studio said it will expand to additional regions based on how the rollout performs in these initial markets, rather than launching everywhere simultaneously.
That regional approach lines up with Riot's stated plan to only expand voice chat to servers where the studio is confident it can properly support the feature, both in terms of technical stability and moderation capacity.
Players outside NA and Oceania will need to wait for further announcements before the feature reaches their region.
When to Expect Patch 26.20
Riot has not shared a specific release date for Patch 26.20, which will carry the team voice chat feature into NA and Oceania.
The most immediate upcoming patch mentioned in the update is Patch 26.18. It is set to bring a handful of unrelated changes, including new Demacian champions joining "League of Legends" Classic, a new run of Ranked 5s, and a Legacy Season structure carrying rewards from earlier events.
Given that 26.18 is still the next patch in line, players hoping to try team voice chat should expect at least a couple of patch cycles before Patch 26.20 and its regional rollout actually arrive.
