Dota 2
Dota 2
Ninjas in Pyjamas vs Alliance BEYOND Epic odds, betting analysis
Steven Rondina
BEYOND Epic is set for an all-Swedish showdown. Or at least, mostly Swedish. Ninjas in Pyjamas is set to take on Alliance in a group stage showdown on June 18. The two teams are in very different places relative to where they’ve been prior to some of their recent showdowns, as Alliance will be looking to stay alive in the event after falling into an early hole while NiP will …
News
DJ’s Earthshaker just won Fnatic a 0% win probability game
Steven Rondina
Djardel Jicko B. “DJ” Mampusti may have just helped his team pull off one of the greatest comebacks in Dota 2 history. Facing Neon Esports in the group stage of the BTS Pro Series SEA League, the Fnatic player leveraged his incredible Earthshaker skills to carry his team to victory. The “greatest comeback ever” label isn’t just talk, either. At one point during the game, Fnatic had a 0% chance …
Dota 2
IceFrog teases big changes, release date for Dota 2 update 7.27
Steven Rondina
Valve seems to be poised to change its approach to Dota 2 updates in a newly permanent way. Game creator IceFrog made an announcement to fans regarding Dota 2 update 7.27. On the Dota 2 developer forum, he stated that the plan was for something in line with the initial rollout of the 7.26 update. “We are planning on releasing the first part of 7.27 in a couple of weeks, …
Dota 2
Things fans should know about Beyond Epic Online League
Nina Forneloza
Fans can virtually cheer for their favorite teams from Europe, CIS, and China in Beyond Epic Online. Beyond Epic Online League will treat fans to some quality Dota 2 action. Beyond The Summit, along with Epic Esports Events and RuHub, will be organizing two regional leagues for Europe and CIS, and China. The tournament features a $250,000 prize pool. The Europe and CIS league will retain most of the cash …
Dota 2
The new Queen of Pain Arcana has a bug that ruins your games
Steven Rondina
“Pay to win” is a phrase that is thrown around a lot with any free-to-play game, but Valve actually flipped that around in Dota 2 by making the new Queen of Pain Eminence of Ristul Arcana a “pay to lose” affair. The new premium cosmetic from the The International 10 Battle Pass significantly overhauled the game’s resident succubus, giving her a new color scheme, new weapon, and new voice. The …
Dota 2
OG announces release of OG Seed due to conflict of interest concerns
Steven Rondina
OG is pulling back on its plans to operate multiple Dota 2 teams. The organization has announced the release of the OG Seed roster. The squad including Zakari William Lee “Zfreek” Freedman and Omar Mohammad “Madara” Dabachachis is set to compete without a sponsor in the immediate future. “As the new calendar started shaping into regional tournaments, we saw that having two rosters competing in the same tournament created a …
Dota 2
Did Valve just reveal the secrets behind Juggernaut’s face?
Steven Rondina
What does Juggernaut’s face look like? Dota 2 fans have asked themselves this exact question on many occasions, as the iconic hero’s mask is central to his character. While Valve doesn’t seem all that interested in actually answering that question, but the publisher has always been keen to keep fans intrigued with Dota 2’s dizziest swordsman. This has come up on a few occasions in the past, but The International …
Dota 2
Sideshop returns to TI10 Battle Pass just 2 days after removal
Steven Rondina
Fans can’t make up their mind on whether they like Sideshop, and neither can Valve. Yet another Dota 2 update has shipped, this time restoring the Dota Auto Chess-themed mini-game to the The International 10 Battle Pass. This comes just two days after Sideshop was removed from the game’s front-facing UI and hidden within the game’s console. The quick reversal from Valve comes after widespread backlash from Dota 2 fans …
Team Liquid vs. Team Nigma BLAST Bounty Hunt betting analysis
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
The idea of Kuro “KuroKy” Salehi Takhasomi and his crew playing opposite Team Liquid still feels somewhat strange. The squad’s best years were spent as a part Team Liquid, and the new Team Nigma brand hasn’t really taken hold just yet. It’s only a matter of time before they completely divorce themselves from that former lineage however, as this will be the eighth showdown between the The International 2017-winning lineup …
Valve drops Sideshop and wagering system from TI10 Battle Pass
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Changes to The International 10 Battle Pass just keep coming, with Valve once again implementing changes to the reward system based on fans’ complaints. The biggest change is the complete removal of the Sideshop mini-game. The game inspired by Dota Auto Chess was nixed as fans struggled with how to play it and how to maximize their ability to earn rewards. It was strategically straightforward for fans that know the …
Translations for all the new voice lines in the TI10 Battle Pass
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
One of the best parts of The International Battle Pass are the chat wheel sounds. Players can use them to rile up enemies and pump up allies, and each year brings a new set of options for players. The TI10 Battle Pass is no exception, bringing with it a new batch of voice options. The trouble is that there are options for a number of different languages, and while there …
Surgery forces Faith_bian out of EHOME’s roster, replacement TBA
Jared Wynne
Dota 2
EHOME has announced that off laner Zhang “Faith_bian” Ruida has been benched from the team for medical reasons. Faith_bian suffered an accident during a video shoot at MDL Macau 2019, fracturing a part of his forearm. During the event, he was replaced by current teammate Zhao “XinQ” Zixing. His arm was surgically repaired after, but requires follow-up procedures that will see him out of action once again. EHOME released an …
Dota 2 player count dips despite the launch of TI10 Battle Pass
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
May was a huge month for Dota 2, with a load of pro games to watch and the launch of The International 10 Battle Pass. It’s generally a great time to be a Dota 2 player, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that more people are playing Dota 2. After three consecutive months of gains, Dota 2’s player base actually dropped in May. According to Steam Charts, Dota 2 had an …
Valve just increased the rewards for every TI10 Battle Pass owner
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Valve has heard fans’ outcry regarding The International 10 Battle Pass, and it has responded. The publisher rolled out a small Dota 2 update that increased the BP rewards for several different aspects of the battle pass. This follows several days of fans griping that Valve was making it more difficult to earn levels and premium rewards without spending significant amounts of cash. In particular, the latest Dota 2 update …
MbS has reportedly spent over $6,000 on TI10 Batle Pass
Olivia Richman
Dota 2
One of the biggest spenders in Dota 2 is Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, according to reports. Since the International 2020 Battle Pass arrived two weeks late, the Saudi Crown Prince has spent over $6,000 on his account that has the handle Purrrrrfect Devil Angel Yukeo. WIN.gg could not independently verify whether the account belongs to MbS. The battle pass attached to the evel 14,430 in just four days, which …
Why is OG still struggling with stars Topson and SumaiL?
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
OG arguably has the most talented Dota 2 roster in the world and stands as the reigning The International champions. So how come they’re losing so much right now? That’s the question that fans of the team are asking these days as the squad has hit the skids over recent months. Despite competing with its full roster, thanks to Topias Miikka “Topson” Taavitsainen and Yeik “MidOne” Nai Zheng being back …
Can TI10 Battle Pass rewards be earned without spending money?
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Dota 2 fans have had about a week now to familiarize themselves with The International 10 Battle Pass, and familiarity breeds contempt. The TI10 Battle Pass is being criticized by fans across social media for a number of different reasons. From Reddit to Twitter to YouTube, people have been doing deep dives into the battle pass, and while few are denying that it has a stellar set of rewards, many …
Study says Dota 2 has most foul-mouthed community in online gaming
Steven Rondina
Dota 2
Most gaming communities are toxic in one way or another, but which is the most toxic? To the surprise of some outside of it, but none within it, Dota 2 is statistically the worst community in gaming according to one study. Or at least, it’s the most foul-mouthed. Online Gambling researched the matter by scanning the largest Reddit communities for a number of prominent video games and finding the rate …
Team Liquid vs. Team Nigma ESL One Birmingham Online betting analysis
Nina Forneloza
Dota 2
Once again, Team Liquid and Team Nigma will face off in an intriguing matchup. The ESL One Birmingham Europe and CIS group stage is almost over. The tournament has featured top-notch games from the best teams in Dota 2. In Group A, Team Liquid and Team Nigma will battle it out for seeding heading into the playoffs. Team Nigma remains undefeated at 5-0 while the 3-2 Team Liquid could be …
Dendi’s B8 drops two players after 26-game losing streak
Jared Wynne
Dota 2
The last couple of months have not been kind to Danil “Dendi” Ishutin. Dota 2’s most popular player has had a hard time adjusting to life after Natus Vincere, with his B8 organization going on a record-breaking, 24-game losing streak earlier this year. Due to the team’s consistently poor form, Swedish carry player Steve “Xcalibur” Ye and Serbian support Nikola “LeBronDota” Popovic have been released from the roster. Xcalibur addressed …
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.
