Dota 2
Dota 2
Techies is really good now, here’s how OG is building them
William Davis
Support Techies is going to ruin your pubs soon in Dota 2, so why not learn how to play it yourself first? Pro Dota 2 team OG is known for its explosive and innovative style of play and that mindset extends to the team’s coaching and drafts. This includes unexpected picks like support Techies. This wacky strat didn’t show up in just a throwaway match either. OG saved the strategy …
Dota 2
These are the 3 best new mids to play in Dota 2 after 7.32
William Davis
The best mids in Dota 2 have already figured out the lane in 7.32, and they’ve discovered three of the best heroes just days into the patch. The sweeping changes brought to heroes in version 7.32 has turned some of the worst mids into the best. The changes to the lane itself are also massive and completely rewrite the game’s tempo. If you’re feeling lost in the new mid lane, …
Dota 2
You should try these Aghanim’s Scepter abilities in Dota 2 7.23
William Davis
The new Aghanim’s Scepters may be the wildest part of Dota 2 7.23 and these three abilities are the most absurd of them all. Dota 2’s newest update has a lot to dig into. Massive building and mechanics changes point towards longer games, which means more chances to pick up a luxury item like Aghanim’s Scepter. Several heroes got buffs, nerfs, or reworks to their 4,200-gold powerup, but three in …
Dota 2
Your Dota 2 games will take much longer after 7.32 update
Steven Rondina
The long-awaited 7.32 update has arrived in Dota 2 and major system changes, including a new kind of creep, are about to make your games last longer. Dota 2 has largely been the same game for the better part of two years. That’s not the worst thing ever, as most exploitable and overpowered strategies have been patched out or rendered obsolete. Still, fans are always wanting something new. Icefrog and …
Dota 2
TI11 Battle Pass could come soon, hidden Steam files suggest
Steven Rondina
The International 2022 Battle Pass may be coming out very soon. Shortly after the TI11 direct invitees were decided, a number of hidden files were changed related to a potential TI11 Battle Pass were changed. Hidden files often reveal the secrets of upcoming game releases, and Valve isn’t immune from this phenomenon. Unlisted updates for Dota 2 were caught by SteamDB, which chronicles updates to Steam and all of its …
Dota 2
Team Spirit wins Arlington Major, now a favorite for TI11
William Davis
After 4 hard-fought games against PSG.LGD, Team Spirit has claimed the Arlington Major championship and cemented itself as possibly the favorite to win TI11. Team Spirit has won the Arlington Major, claiming the lion’s share of the $500,000 prize pool. The event also marks a rematch of the grand finals of The International 2021. While all players contributed with excellent play, Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov stood out with stellar performances on Beastmaster …
Dota 2
TI11 tickets sell out and scalpers sell them for thousands
Olivia Richman
Another year, another sold out The International. That doesn’t mean fans will be in the seats though, as TI11 proved very popular for ticket resellers and scalpers. Tickets to The International 2022 went on sale on August 13 and seats were sold out in less than an hour. Fans have been scrambling to find a way to see the top Dota 2 action live but are met with incredible markups …
Dota 2
TI10 True Sight release date revealed in Arlington Major
William Davis
True Sight is the king of esports documentaries and TI10 is finally joining the acclaimed series with a release date finally revealed for the film. Valve has finally announced a True Sight documentary for The International 2021. The documentary will showcase the unprecedented victory of Team Spirit at TI10, where the squad earned more than $18 million. It will also give another look at runner-up PSG.LGD. Valve announced the project …
Here are all the TI11 competing teams and how they qualified
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
The International 2022 is fast approaching and the majority of teams have now locked up their spots in the event. TI11 is set to include a variety of top teams from all six regions, with a few surprises making the cut and big names getting left on the outside looking in. Unlike past years, TI11 will have a much longer list of competitors. Alongside the previously planned top 12 from …
A new DOTA: Dragon’s Blood character could be the next new hero
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
DOTA: Dragon’s Blood Book 3 has been released and the series is likely over, and it may have introduced a new character who could be the next new hero in Dota 2. Valve has made it clear that it will not muster up the energy to further promote the animated series based on one of its most popular games. Valve couldn’t even post a tweet about it. But that doesn’t …
The ending to DOTA: Dragon’s Blood season 3 explained
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Are you confused over the ending to DOTA: Dragon’s Blood and need the conclusion explained to you? Dota 2 is a tall drink of water from a lore perspective. Every game is canon, different skins represent different characters, and everyone is fighting over chunks of the moon that are actually living things. The animated series maintains all that, then adds a bunch more on top of it. Couple all that …
Pro game proves tier 5 neutrals are now completely imbalanced
William Davis
Dota 2
Tier 5 neutrals are supposed to end the game by introducing insane power spikes, but a recent pro game showed just how completely imbalanced they can now be. Pirate Hats and Fallen Skies are fun to use, but there’s a reason Dota 2 saves them until after an hour. Tier 5 neutrals are some of the most powerful items in the game next to Aegises and Divine Rapiers. While some …
We explain the Great Confluence, Dota 2’s future mega-event
William Davis
Dota 2
The Great Confluence is on its way to Dota 2 and it’s set to be a cataclysmic event of some sort, but what exactly does that mean? Dota 2 lore is a strange beast, but it looks like Valve is cooking up something big for the game’s storyline. Several characters and events have referenced some kind of event called the Great Confluence. Some signs point to it being a massive …
Team Secret kicks iceiceice, add Resolut1on for TI11 qualifiers
William Davis
Dota 2
A surprise roster change for Team Secret will swap Daryl “iceiceice” Koh and Roman “Resolut1on” Fomynok in the offlane role. Team Secret has turned its former stand-in Resolut1ion into a full-time starter. Unfortunately, that also means cutting a fan-favorite offlaner. iceiceice has officially left the Team Secret organization, but a replacement has already been announced. The move could be spurred by the team’s lackluster performance in 2022 that included missing …
ana will stand in for RNG at the Dota 2 Arlington Major
William Davis
Dota 2
The Arlington Major visa crisis has resulted in another surprise comeback for Anathan “ana” Pham. After announcing that Daniel “Ghost” Chan Kok Hong would not be able to attend duke to visa issues, Royal Never Give Up will now sport double-TI champion ana as its hard carry for the Arlington Major. This marks the second big Dota 2 event to feature ana since his informal retirement after The International 2019. …
The best heroes for 10 vs 10 in Dota 2 are completely OP
William Davis
Dota 2
The 10 vs 10 game mode returns to Dota 2 in this week’s spotlight, but certain heroes are completely overpowered due to the doubled hero count. 10 vs 10 is rare in Dota 2. It’s difficult to coordinate a game between 20 people, and the Dota 2 map has a hard time accommodating so many players. However, it does bring new strategies and ideas to the Dota 2 experience. Many …
The TI11 Battle Pass leak is fake, here’s when it’s coming
William Davis
Dota 2
The International 2022 Battle Pass is probably on its way, but leaked images of the TI11 splash screen are just plain trolling. A leaked image of the TI11 Battle Pass for Dota 2 has begun circulating online. The image claims to show a red battle pass background with a new arcana available for Skywrath Mage. However, on further analysis, it is certainly fake. Here’s how to tell and when the …
Xtreme forfeits Arlington Major slot, loses chance at TI11
William Davis
Dota 2
After accepting a controversial forfeit in the Dota Pro Circuit, Xtreme Gaming has forfeited its own slot at the Arlington Major. The decision to not attend the major Dota 2 tournament comes from Xtreme Gaming management, who cited difficulty with acquiring travel visas. The player most affected appears to be Lou “lou” Zhen, whose visa application was denied three times. The promising squad will lose out on a ton of …
Why are PSG.LGD players rubbing XinQ’s belly before pro games?
William Davis
Dota 2
Rubbing the belly of your teammate sounds like a strange pre-match ritual, but for PSG.LGD’s Dota 2 team, it’s becoming a longstanding tradition. One of the strangest phenomena in Dota 2 esports is watching PSG.LGD walk up to the squad’s support player Zhao “XinQ” Zixing and begin to rub his belly. Team captain Zhang “y`” Yiping is the most common masseuse, but offlaner Zhang “Faith_bian” Ruida has also been seen …
Topson confirms a comeback to pro Dota 2, but when?
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Topias “Topson” Taavitsainen is looking to make a comeback to Dota 2 esports, but it doesn’t seem like he will be returning to OG. The two-time TI champion has been out of action since The International 2021 and was openly discussing retirement before the event. As is often the case in esports, that idea didn’t hold up over time. With the qualifiers to The International 2022 looming, Topson is considering …
Few games have proven to have the resilient popularity enjoyed by Dota 2. The multiplayer online battle arena, or MOBA for short, has been among the biggest and most successful projects released by gaming giant Valve, and it continues to enjoy great popularity to this day.
That popularity has endured despite a great number of changes that have been made to both the game itself and to the communities surrounding it. The competitive title’s history reaches all the way back to another game created and published by another developer, but with Valve now leading the way, Dota 2 seems primed to last well into the future.
From Blizzard to Valve, Dota 2 continues to evolve
While know today as one of Valve’s key game properties, Dota 2 has its origins in a real-time strategy game developed and published by famed video game company Blizzard. One of the franchises that keyed Blizzard’s success and reputational growth in the games industry is WarCraft, which today is best-known for the popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) World of Warcraft.
But prior to the success of World of Warcraft, the high-fantasy franchise was experienced through a series of RTS games. The third main title in that series, WarCraft 3, provided players not only with a great experience right out of the box, but also with the opportunity to heavily modify the game and its functions, and to play modified versions of the experience as custom games online with other players.
The most popular of these custom game modes was arguably Defense of the Ancients, or DotA for short. This custom game mode saw two teams of players face off against each other with strong individual champion characters, as opposed to building out complex home bases and developing broad armies of diverse units.
It was an entirely different way to play the game, and it proved so popular that would eventually give birth to an entirely new genre of video games: the MOBA genre.
The continuation of the original DotA became Dota 2, a project developed under the guidance of famed developer and publisher Valve. Flush with success from online marketplace Steam and its own franchises including Half-Life and Portal, Valve was more than willing to invest in this new and innovative game type.
The International sets Dota 2 apart
While there have been many other competitive games created and released since, including other popular MOBAs such as Riot Games’ League of Legends, Dota 2 has stood apart for remaining true to its roots and for massive competitive events like The International. First held in 2011 for the purpose of bringing together disparate competitive teams from all around the world with more than $1 million on the line, the esports tournament quickly grew into the biggest such event of each calendar year.
One of the main drivers behind that immense growth was the upwards trajectory of the tournament’s prize pool. Partially funded by Dota 2 players and esports fans, the prize pool for The International began increasing in 2013 and eventually ballooned to a massive total of over $40 million by the time 2021 rolled around. For the groups of players and coaches who climbed this mountain and won its top prize, it was a truly life-changing event.
For varied reasons, Valve eventually soured on running the event itself and on the idea of having so much money filtered into one specific event. Prize winnings were dropped significantly in 2022, and even further for the 2023 and 2024 events. But despite the prizes on hand no longer being quite so astronomical, The International still boasts a prize in the low millions, and it remains the biggest event on the Dota 2 competitive calendar and arguably on the greater esports calendar across all games.
