Dota 2
Dota 2
Dota Plus Winter Update adds new skins and unusual courier
William Davis
Thanks to the Dota Plus Winter Update, Dota 2 fans have a new set of items to spend their shards on. Valve has released a new Dota 2 update that brings changes to Dota Plus. The seasonal update adds a new Wintry Treasure with brand-new skins to collect and a very rare unusual courier. It also added a new set of Winter 2021 quests to complete. Lastly, Dota 2 fans …
Dota 2
Zai wants to move the Roshan pit, but where should it go?
William Davis
Roshan’s pit has been on the top side river since 7.00, but pro players think it needs to move. In an interview with his sponsor Team Liquid, Ludwig “Zai” Wåhlberg shared his thoughts on the current Dota 2 metagame. Zai mentioned a stale laning stage and a lack of new objectives as his primary concerns. He also stated his belief that the current Roshan situation needs to change. But even …
Dota 2
How to recalibrate your MMR in Dota 2
William Davis
You can recalibrate your Dota 2 MMR with just a few clicks, but be prepared for the most intense matchmaking experience of your life. All Dota 2 players have the option to recalibrate their matchmaking rank at any time. Whether you feel like you’re stuck in the wrong bracket or you’re a returning player looking to find fairer matches, the recalibration feature can help you to correct your matchmaking rank. …
Dota 2
New Dota 2 battle pass coming, likely with Drow Ranger arcana
William Davis
Drow Ranger could get the next arcana in Dota 2 if some upgrade strings are to be believed, and all signs point to it being part of a new battle pass. The recent Dota 2 update that brought back the fantasy challenge also added several new strings to the game’s files, including a reference to an upcoming arcana for Drow Ranger. The flashy new cosmetic will most likely launch with …
Dota 2
OG reveals shocking all-new Dota 2 roster for next DPC season
Steven Rondina
It was already known that OG was set to have an all-new roster for the 2023 Dota Pro Circuit season, but it’s still surprising how different the lineup is. The organization saw three of its players step away from the game and released two more, while insisting that it would still compete at the start of the next DPC season. That meant OG was hitting the reset button, a prediction …
Dota 2
JerAx returns to pro Dota 2 to lead new Evil Geniuses roster
Steven Rondina
Jesse “JerAx” Vainikka is returning to action with Evil Geniuses. Two-time The International champion JerAx is ending his retirement in a surprising way. Evil Geniuses announced that the player is returning to lead an overhauled roster that also includes Virtus.pro carry Egor “Nightfall” Grigorenko, formerly known as epileptick1d. The Evil Geniuses roster for the 2021-2022 Dota Pro Circuit season will include the following players: Artour “Arteezy” BabaevAbed “Abed” YusopEgor “Nightfall” …
Dota 2
N0tail announces indefinite hiatus from professional Dota 2
Steven Rondina
For the first time in a very long while, Dota 2 esports will have to make due without Johan “N0tail” Sundstein. The OG captain announced that he is set to take at least a full year off from competitive Dota 2. This completes the dissolution of OG’s The International 2021 roster, with all the other players either stepping away from the game or being released. “I’m personally taking at least …
Dota 2
BSJ banned mid-game for smurfing after daring Valve to do it
William Davis
Popular Dota 2 streamer BSJ got a surprise ban from Valve after smurfing on a fan’s account. On November 19, educational Dota 2 streamer Brian “BSJ” Canavan was unexpectedly banned while playing on a viewer’s account. The speed of the ban implies that it was personally administered by a Valve employee. Not all smurfing is against the rules, but by sharing his account with a popular streamer, one unlucky player …
Topson steps away from pro Dota 2, may be retiring
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Topias Miikka “Topson” Taavitsainen is going to be gone from professional Dota 2 for a very long time, and possibly forever. OG Esports announced that Topson is looking to spend a lengthy block of time away from the game in order to spend time with his wife and young child. This comes as little surprise as Topson was openly discussing taking a break from the game ahead of The International …
Alliance reveals new roster with AdmiralBulldog as sub
William Davis
Dota 2
Alliance has announced a shocking new roster for the 2022 Dota 2 season. The storied organization is heavily overhauling its roster for the next Dota Pro Circuit season. Alliance has announced three new players in the mid, offlane, and soft support positions. The team has also announced the official return of TI3 off-laner Henrik “AdmiralBulldog” Ahnberg as an official substitute. The godfather of split-pushing will step in if any players …
SumaiL officially joins Team Secret for next DPC season
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
The rumors have proven to be true as Syed “SumaiL” Hassan is officially being tabbed as the new mid laner for Team Secret. The organization confirmed the news in its latest short comic, which has been used to reveal the new lineup and position shuffles that will take effect next season. With the addition of SumaiL, Team Secret’s lineup for next season will be: Michał “Nisha” JankowskiSyed “SumaiL” HassanDaryl Koh …
Paparazi passes Yatoro for highest MMR, forms new team
William Davis
Dota 2
The new highest MMR player in Dota 2 has redeemed himself after a rough run at The International 10. Chinese mid superstar Zhang “Paparazi” Chengjun is now the highest MMR player in the world. After a long final stretch, he achieved his goal of surpassing Team Spirit’s TI10 championship-winning carry Illya “Yatoro” Mulyarchuk on the Western Europe leaderboard. Shortly after taking first place, a Chinese Dota 2 insider revealed that …
Fly leaves Evil Geniuses, leads Talon’s new SEA Dota 2 team
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Tal “Fly” Aizik is leaving Evil Geniuses and heading to Southeast Asia to helm a new Dota 2 team sponsored by Talon Esports. The organization best known for sponsoring League of Legends’ PSG Talon squad is entering the competitive Dota 2 scene. The brand is making a splashy entrance into the new title by putting together an intriguing squad of SEA talent with the surprising X-factor of one of Dota …
MATUMBAMAN is leaving Team Secret and SumaiL may replace him
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Lasse Aukusti “MATUMBAMAN” Urpalainen is departing from Team Secret and that has some big implications for Syed “SumaiL” Hassan. Clement “Puppey” Ivanov’s organization announced the news of MATUMBAMAN’s departure on Twitter. It is unclear what is leading to the carry player’s departure and both sides seemed to lament his leaving on the team’s official website. “I’m staring at this notepad and I’m a bit at a loss for words. Writing pleasantries for …
New Natus Vincere Dota 2 roster for 2022 DPC announced
William Davis
Dota 2
A new Natus Vincere Dota 2 roster has formed after a season of scandals. According to the team’s official Dota Pro Circuit registration, a new Na’Vi lineup has been confirmed. The squad includes several famed Eastern European players including Vladimir “No[o]ne” Minenko and Alexey “Solo” Berezin. It also brings the unexpected return of offlaner Viktor “GeneRaL” Nigrini. In the wake of Team Spirit’s $18,208,300 championship at TI10, the CIS region is …
What’s the average rank in Dota 2? Player chart reveals all
William Davis
Dota 2
The average rank in Dota 2 may be lower than you think. A new graph has been released through Chinese social media that claims to reveal the exact distribution of ranks in Dota 2. The chart does not specify exact MMR, instead grouping players by medal. Based on this information, the most common rank in Dota 2 is Crusader 2, which is around 1800 MMR. In addition to the average …
Dota 2 account buying leads to accusations at Virtus.pro, gpk
William Davis
Dota 2
The most high-profile case of Dota 2 account buying is playing out right now. A ranked player is currently running rampant in European Dota 2 pubs. The account was ranked within the top 50 when he acquired it, but it has quickly dropped down the ladder. The player has barely won any matches since he started playing, at one point falling down a 17-match losing streak. He has also chosen …
This is how to get free skins in Dota 2
William Davis
Dota 2
New Dota 2 players can jumpstart their armory with a few free skins, all courtesy of Valve. As part of early 2021’s learning experience update, Dota 2 players now have a simple way to earn a bunch of free skins in the popular MOBA. By completing intro quests, players can earn individual cosmetic pieces for many different heroes. Even experienced Dota 2 players might find it worthwhile to run the …
Saksa, SumaiL leaving OG after disappointing run in TI10
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
OG is set to look very different in 2022, with the organization announcing that Martin “Saksa” Sazdov and Syed “SumaiL” Hassan are set to leave the Dota 2 team. OG had a relatively disappointing run in The International 2021, with the team finishing in eighth place. That flop has led to a major shakeup in the team, with SumaiL and Saksa both departing. The organization stated that both SumaiL and …
The Dota 2 player count is rocketing up in late 2021, but why?
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Dota 2 suffered a brutal player count drop in September, but it has rebounded brilliantly in October. Dota 2 posted one of its strongest month-over-month gains in the game’s long history in October, with enormous jumps in terms of both average and peak player counts according to Steam Charts. This comes following an action-packed month for the game at both the professional and casual levels. Throughout the month, Dota 2 …
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.
