In ZAM's interview with Marc Merrill, co-founder and president of Riot Games, we learn more about the new features and gameplay modes introduced in League of Legends' new "Season One" content update

League of Legends received its first major content update last week, dubbed "Season One," introducing some  long-awaited gameplay modes, new artwork, a revamped website and a new Champion. The most popular features of Season One are the new competitive gameplay modes; ranked games and "draft mode," both of which allow players to compete for prizes totaling more than $100,000 by the season's end. Players will then have the chance to qualify for the grand finals by competing in a circuit of local, online, and global events, according to developer Riot Games' official Season One announcement page.

This week ZAM interviews Marc Merrill, co-founder and president of Riot Games, to find out more about League of Legends' first major content update. In the following Q&A, we ask Merrill about the overall structure of Season One and learn about the new, competitive gameplay modes. Merrill explains the differences between "normal" and "ranked ladder" modes, and describes the fan-requested "live draft" mode in more detail. We also learn about the possible format of future seasons (will they follow the same model as Season One?) and find out what's included in the $100,000 prize package for future winners in the months to come. Read our full interview with Merrill after the jump, and check out ZAM's League of Legends portal site for more news and game information!

ZAM: For players who might not be familiar with League of Legends' (LoL) previous gameplay system, can you describe the main features that Season One has recently introduced?

Marc Merrill: The launch of Season One really marked two things. The first was that it was the biggest content update for League of Legends since the game launched late last year. Updates include new artwork, a revamped Web site, player profiles and log-in screens, a new Champion and skins, and a lot more. But the biggest features that our players were most excited about are Draft Mode, Ranked Games and Ladders.

Draft Mode offers a whole new level of competitive complexity and allows teams to strategically select Champions before the game. Players are able to ban Champions so that the other team can't use them, and can see who their opponents are picking so that they can counter-pick those selections.

Ranked Games is a new mode for our really competitive players. Based on how a player performs, he or she will receive a public rating that shows how he or she stands up against other players in the Ladders. We'll be hosting tournaments and crowning winners based on how they stack up in the rankings, so only serious, competitive players looking for a really high level of competition should play Ranked Games.

There are three different Ladders currently available: 3-man premade for Twisted Treeline, Ones-and-Twos for Summoner's Rift and 5-man premade for Summoner's Rift.

ZAM: What distinguishes the new, "ranked ladder" gameplay mode from normal game matches?

Merrill: Ranked Games are where the competitive players spend the majority of their time. This is where they get rankings on the ladders, earn achievements and participate in the tournaments. Players are matched against other players and placed into games based on their position on the ladder – the better one performs, the higher and the more competitive the games will get.

Normal Games, on the other hand, are where people will go for a more standard experience where they can play the game outside of the intensely competitive environment of Ranked Games. So that means people who just want to have a laid-back game with friends, want to try out a new Champion or need to level up and get into Ranked Games will spend their time in Normal Games.

ZAM: When will Season One come to an end, and will later seasons follow that same time frame?

Merrill: We haven't announced the official end date of Season One but you can expect it to last at least six months. Future season duration may or may not follow the same time frame—we are still in the planning stages of future seasons so stay tuned for more to come.

ZAM: What are a few examples of the prizes that players can earn at the end-of-season finals, which is said to include a package worth $100,000?

Merrill: In addition to the large cash prize purse available, participants will be competing for the chance to win in-game items like exclusive skins, Riot Points and more; physical prizes such as Riot gear and hardware or accessories from our third-party partners; and tons more. We're putting together the prizes for all the tournaments planned for Season One so we'll have more to announce in the coming months.

ZAM: Based on previous trends, do you imagine the solo bracket will be as popular as pre-made brackets in ranked matches?

Merrill: The solo queue is actually more popular than the pre-made bracket. Players really like to experience a competitive game against highly skilled opponents without needing to always have their friends online. In a nutshell, there is a lower barrier to participating in the solo bracket.

ZAM: Why are ranked ladder games restricted to players at level 20 and above?

Merrill: Due to player feedback and requests we recently increased the level restriction to 30. The reason for this cap is that we want to ensure the highest quality of competition possible. For the first week of Season One, when the cap was at level 20, we were seeing a lot of lopsided games where the less experienced players were not performing at a very high level of play – so having a cap of level 30 essentially gives players a more equal playing field and helps to ensure fun, competitive games.

Now, we aren't saying that people lower than level 30 aren't good players, but we've seen that there's a big difference in the quality of games. Also, this gives those lower than level 30 the chance to continue to practice and level up so that they are even better when they enter ranked matches.