American Express Woos Gamers With Riot Games Partnership

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American Express has announced a partnership with Riot Games to bring in-game rewards to League of Legends players through everyday spending with American Express Serve prepaid accounts.

Serve is integrating a reward-based system called RP+ to give League of Legends players so-called Riot Points, a virtual currency that can be used to purchase in-game items like extra customization or boosts.

Players earn Riot Points for signing up for the card as well as for every qualifying purchase. That includes: 1,000 Riot Points with complete registration, 1,000 Riot Points the first time users load $20 onto their accounts, 10,000 Riot Points the first time gamers use direct deposit to add $20 or more to their accounts, and 1,000 Riot Points for their first 10 purchases with the cards.

Signup and the website go live August 14.

According to Riot, League of Legends is "a fast-paced, competitive online game that blends the speed and intensity of [a real-time strategy] with [role-playing game] elements" that includes "two teams of powerful champions, each with a unique design and play style [that] battle head-to-head across multiple battlefields and game modes."

Riot also says League of Legends has more than 32 million active monthly players who log more than one billion hours of gameplay a month. It was not clear what proportion of those 32 million players fall within the campaign's target of "millennial gamers."

"The rise of the eSports community, as well as the influx of gaming into the millennial consumer's lifestyle, inspired American Express to partner with Riot Games to provide a unique service to a largely untapped, albeit niche, audience," says Ian Swanson, vice president of enterprise growth at American Express.

He also says digital banner ads will begin August 14 on the League of Legends Championship Series website.

Gamers who sign up for RP+ will receive the option to acquire a customized League of Legends card with their choice of four popular champions and original art from the game. That includes Teemo, Vi, Lux, Twisted Fate, the Summoner's Cup, and the League of Legends logo.

In addition, American Express says Serve allows card members to transfer money between fellow players who also have accounts free of charge.