Reactions have been deeply divided. Many fans expect a wave of toxicity to flood voice chat, and of course, there will always be people who use it maliciously. Voice is immediate, emotional, and far harder to moderate in real time, whereas text messages can at least be reviewed and filtered. Harassment, including sexism and racism, can also become more intense and more directly targeted through voice communication.
the average league game when riot adds voice chat pic.twitter.com/zFmF1mIHjZ
— 1v9.GG (@1v9GG_) February 18, 2026
This option could also create a gap between the two teams. If everyone on blue side is willing and able to turn on their mic, but on red side some players don’t have a microphone, aren’t comfortable speaking English, or simply don’t want to talk, it creates a structural disadvantage. What is meant to be optional could quickly become indirectly mandatory at higher ranks, where coordination and speed of communication matter the most.
The Benefits of Voice Chat
Despite the potential drawbacks of voice chat, it becomes clear that the feature could be a real game-changer for solo queue. Communication will become more fluid and more precise. Pings are useful, but they’re limited. Voice enables instant shotcalling, clearer engage and disengage timing, and better coordination around objectives.
The game would also move closer to what we see in professional play (depending on the elo, of course), where communication is constant. That would give macro and shotcalling a far greater role than they currently have, as the game in its current state often feels very individualistic.
At higher Elos, voice chat could even give younger players a first taste of what it’s like to play within a coordinated team environment. A major evolution would be that games should become far more structured. One of the common frustrations in solo queue is feeling powerless in specific situations, such as teammates taking the fight in a numerical disadvantage.
