Dota 2
Dota 2
This was the best and worst of Dota 2 in 2020
Steven Rondina
Dota 2 is done for 2020. The pro scene is currently in limbo and it’s unlikely that another major balance update will arrive in the coming weeks. With the calendars set to flip, it’s worth taking a look over a year’s worth of Dota 2. 2020 was a generally difficult year for Dota 2. The game itself struggled in many ways, and the esports scene was hit particularly hard. Here …
Dota 2
Radiant side has a massive advantage in the current Dota 2 meta
Steven Rondina
An old balance problem might be resurfacing in Dota 2 right now. Dota 2 has long struggled to perfectly balance the dire and radiant sides of the map. Try as Valve might, one side or the other always seems to have an edge. And right now, the radiant side is favored by a significant margin. From GPM to XPM to KDA, almost every hero in Dota 2 has it better …
Dota 2
How to build new hero Hoodwink as core and support
Steven Rondina
New Dota 2 hero Hoodwink is a couple of weeks old at this point, which means that top players are starting to fully grasp how to play her. As with every Dota 2 hero, there are a number of different ways to play it that vary based on where she lanes, the enemy team’s composition, and the general state of the game. Here are the best options for each role …
Dota 2
New Dota 2 hero Hoodwink nerfed immediately after release
Steven Rondina
Dota 2 fans aren’t especially big on Hoodwink, and apparently neither is Valve. Less than a day after her release, the newly released hero received a significant nerf. The news was generally welcomed by fans, as it preempts what has become a tradition in Dota 2 of having new heroes be wildly overpowered. Hoodwink’s base agility was reduced by four, which chops down both her attack speed and damage at …
Dota 2
New Dota 2 hero Hoodwink added in Mistwood Update
Steven Rondina
Dota 2 fans have been squirrely about getting new content and Valve seems to have noticed. The newest Dota 2 hero has arrived as part of the Mistwood Update, with Hoodwink joining the fray. The ranged hero has a variety of unique spells that are similar to those seen with other Dota 2 heroes but has a focus on using trees that makes her kit a bit more unique. “Hoodwink’s …
Dota 2
N0tail jumps into top 5, new top player in Dota 2 player rankings
Steven Rondina
EPIC League resulted in one of the biggest shifts in the player rankings to date. Virtus.pro’s strong performance in the event was a crowning achievement for the organization and established the team as the best in the CIS region once again. Meanwhile, Team Secret posted its worst performance of 2020, going 10-10 in the group stage and suffering an early elimination from the playoffs. That was a big event on …
Dota 2
PSG.LGD, Elephant hunt for Secret’s top spot in Dota 2 rankings
Steven Rondina
Some big changes have hit the Dota 2 rankings, and things are looking set to change even more soon. After months of a rigid hierarchy defined by Team Secret, Quincy Crew, and Fnatic dominating their respective regions, the top 10 has been blown wide open. Even Team Secret, after months as the undisputed best team in Dota 2, is now just a sliver ahead of the pack. Here’s where things …
Dota 2
Valve confirms release date for Mistwood Update with 7.28 patch
Steven Rondina
At long last, Dota 2’s stale meta is set to be shaken up. Valve has announced the official release date for the Mistwood Update, which is set to add a new hero, as well as Dota 2 update 7.28. This will be the first gameplay update to Dota 2 since August, when 7.27d was launched. The news was teased in a post from the official Dota 2 Twitter account: Thursday …
Just Error reportedly disbands, SumaiL once again a free agent
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Dota 2’s Syed “SumaiL” Hassan is teamless once again. According to Ukrainian caster Vitalii Nikolaevich “v1lat” Volochai, Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev has confirmed that Just Error is no more. The team’s roster was made up of the following players: Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev Syed “SumaiL” Hassan Vladimir “No[o]ne” Minenko Bakyt “Zayac” Emilzhanov Alexey “Solo” Berezin The disbandment comes after an underwhelming performance at EPIC League. The team controversially earned a spot in …
This Dota 2 pro just played 152 games in only 8 days
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Professional Dota 2 players spend much more time in the game than the average casual. Some take this to an extreme. Then there’s what Igor “iLTW” Filatov has been doing. According to WePlay!, the former Virtus.pro carry has played 152 games of Dota 2 in the span of just eight days. That averages out to 19 games of Dota 2 per day during that stretch, which means he’s been playing …
Why is everyone mad at SirActionSlacks and Arkosh Gaming?
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Arkosh Gaming is branching out, and Dota 2 fans and pro players aren’t happy about it. Arkosh Gaming was originally imagined as a series of show matches involving a black metal-themed squad of anonymous players who take on opponents from all regions and all levels of pro Dota 2. Things started going in a different direction when this lineup was invited to the BTS Pro Series Season 4 tournament. Though …
SumaiL out, Resolut1on in for Just Error in EPIC League playoff
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Syed “SumaiL” Hassan may be without a team once again. Just Error has announced that it will be substituting Roman “Resolut1on” Fominok for SumaiL in the EPIC League Division 2 playoffs. The organization stated that this is a temporary measure, but the dynamics of the team and the timing of the decision suggests that it may be a trial run for Resolut1on to permanently replace SumaiL. Just Error’s lineup after …
Valve reveals details for new Dota Pro Circuit format in 2021
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
The Dota 2 pro scene is set to undergo a huge overhaul in 2021. Those changes were initially set to take place in 2020, but the scene was instead left in limbo for months. The gears will start turning again in January with the introduction of the new Dota Pro Circuit. Instead of revolving around a series of majors and minors, the bulk of the season will play out in …
OG N0tail pulls off hilarious outplay vs Nigma at EPIC League
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
OG isn’t playing on the same level they were back at The International 2019, but that’s not stopping the team from keeping up the cheekiness that made their victorious runs so memorable. Johan “N0tail” Sundstein showed that during one of the team’s Epic League matches against Team Nigma while he was playing as Magnus. In the middle of an early game skirmish, OG’s captain made the strange decision to park …
Ex-Evil Geniuses captains ppd, Fear reuniting in BTS Pro Series
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Some of North America’s most credentialed Dota 2 players are set to return to action together in the very near future. Peter “ppd” Dager has announced that he is coming out of retirement for BTS Pro Series Season 4. Joining him are a number of accomplished North American players. The lineup stands as follows: Clinton “Fear” Loomis dnm David “Moo” Hull Jingjun “Sneyking” Wu Peter “ppd” Dager Notably, this seemingly …
EPIC League has Secret falling, VP climbing in player rankings
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
All of the top Dota 2 teams in the world are active right now, and that’s made for a massive shift in the player rankings. This installment of the player rankings marks a major shakeup that undid the established order. Catch up on the player rankings: How the WIN.gg rankings are calculated The previous player rankings article Team Secret has maintained steady control of the top three spots in the …
Vikin.gg, Elephant break into top 10 Dota 2 team rankings
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Dota 2’s grind continued on with Realms Collide in the west, the China Pro Cup in the east, and EPIC League between. Those events have made for some major shifts over the last two weeks, with top teams slipping and newcomers reaching the top 10. Here’s the top 10 Dota 2 teams: Catch up on the Dota 2 team rankings: Here’s how the rankings work The previous edition of the …
New Dota Plus update, guild rewards drop for 2020 Winter Season
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Dota Plus’ seasonal rewards have reset for the winter season, but Valve gave longtime subscribers an extra bit of love this time around. The list of changes to Dota Plus for this season are largely what one would expect, with a new treasure and an additional set of rewards. There is also a new batch of emoticons and chat wheel sprays alongside some recycled chat wheel sounds from The International …
Dota 2 star RAMZES666 is now a Nike-sponsored athlete
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Nike is continuing its esports expansion by sponsoring individual players. The athletic apparel manufacturer has tendered a partnership with Dota 2 star Roman “RAMZES666” Kushnarev. RAMZES666 is only the second esports player to be directly sponsored by Nike. “For me, Nike was always the №1 brand in the world, and I am very pleased that thanks to Winstrike I was introduced to the company. With Nike’s support many great athletes, …
Is support Invoker viable? Dota 2 pros seem to think so
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
You know how ranked games will often have a “hard support” Pudge that decides he needs to actually play core after 10 minutes? Well, what if that happened in a pro game? Top-tier Dota 2 doesn’t actually see that kind of unilateral audible get called, but it has increasingly seen teams recast traditional carry heroes into support roles. The benefits to this are numerous, in particular how it offers greater …
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.
