In the world of animation and video game adaptations, few projects have had the staying power of Arcane: League of Legends. Even now, in 2026, the show is still held up as a gold standard. Back when it first dropped, it held a flawless 100% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes—a rare feat. And 96% of audiences rated it highly, proving that this was no fleeting hype. Riot Games clearly knew they had something special. That’s why, right after the first season’s triumph, they moved quickly to secure a future with the French animation studio behind it all: Fortiche Productions.

Fortiche wasn’t just another contractor. They had been working with Riot for years, crafting music videos and cinematic trailers. But Arcane turned them into global stars. In early 2022, Riot made a significant equity investment in the studio, essentially binding the two companies together for the long haul. Nicolo Laurent, Riot’s CEO at the time, summed it up: “Fortiche has been an integral partner for a long time, but this agreement ensures we’ll be working closely for decades to come.” And he was right. That partnership has only grown stronger since then.

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Fast-forward to 2026, and that decade-long collaboration is no longer just a promise—it’s a lived reality. Arcane Season 2 arrived in late 2024, and the wait was worth every second. Viewers were treated to even deeper dives into the twin cities of Piltover and Zaun, with new champions stepping into the spotlight. The animation quality, always a Fortiche hallmark, reached jaw-dropping new heights. Critics praised the character arcs, the emotional weight, and the seamless blending of hand-painted textures with 3D models. Once again, Arcane dominated Netflix’s global charts, hitting the Top 10 in over 60 countries within its first week.

The awards train didn’t slow down either. After the first season netted nine Annie Award nominations—including Best TV/Media for general audiences—the second season picked up even more, reinforcing Fortiche’s reputation as a major force in international animation. Pascal Charrue, Jerome Combe, and Arnaud Delord, the studio’s co-founders, have often spoken about how Riot’s trust unlocked new levels of creativity. “Riot Games gave us the means to achieve our common ambitions,” they said back in 2022. In 2026, that statement feels like an understatement. Fortiche has now opened a second studio in Paris and is doubling its workforce to handle multiple projects simultaneously.

Of course, the Arcane effect didn’t just stay on streaming services. The hit song “Enemy” by Imagine Dragons, featuring J.I.D, became a cross-platform sensation. Its Fortiche-produced music video racked up billions of views and even topped the Billboard charts. The synergy between music, animation, and gaming proved that Riot’s multimedia universe could rival any major IP. By 2025, a League of Legends cinematic album had been released, featuring new tracks from artists like Woodkid and PVRIS, all paired with animated short films by Fortiche.

Meanwhile, the partnership with Netflix expanded beyond just Arcane. The casual runner Hextech Mayhem, a spinoff starring Ziggs the yordle, made its way from mobile onto the Netflix app in 2022. Although not as massive as the TV series, it showed how Riot could use different mediums to flesh out the world of Runeterra. By 2026, that approach has grown into a full-blown transmedia strategy. Riot and Fortiche are reportedly in pre-production on an animated feature film set in the League universe, and whispers of a live-action adaptation have started circling the industry.

But why has the bond between Riot and Fortiche remained so unshakeable? A big part is mutual respect. Fortiche co-founders have always emphasized that Riot didn’t just hand them scripts and demand results. Instead, they collaborated deeply, pushing each other to elevate what game-to-screen storytelling could be. That trust paid off spectacularly. Today, when people talk about the “golden age of video game adaptations,” Arcane is the benchmark everyone else tries to reach.

Looking ahead, the future seems brighter than the Piltover sun. With Fortiche now an equity partner rather than just a hired studio, both companies are fully aligned. New technologies like real-time rendering and virtual production are being woven into their pipeline, promising even more stunning visuals. And with the League player base still going strong, there’s no shortage of stories waiting to be told—from the war-torn lands of Noxus to the mysterious Shadow Isles.

For fans who’ve been along for the ride since that first November 2021 premiere, it’s been a joy to watch. Laurent’s 2022 prediction that “the best is yet to come” turned out to be prophetic. In 2026, we’re living in that best moment—and if the patterns hold, the animated worlds of Fortiche and Riot will only keep getting richer.