Win.gg
Dota 2
10 years ago, Valve announced Dota 2’s development 10 years ago, Valve announced Dota 2's development
It’s been 10 years since the announcement of Dota 2.
On October 12, 2010, Valve revealed the development of its ground-breaking MOBA. The announcement ended speculation within the community that the famed game developer will soon offer a standalone version of the popular Warcraft 3 custom map Defense of the Ancients.
10 years ago on this day, Dota 2 was publicly announced by Valve with the first promo images and information being released. A good and long decade.
Ping if you were there on that day.
#Dota2
pic.twitter.com/uebv9HAOtU
— Wykrhm Reddy (@wykrhm)
October 13, 2020
Valve worked with DotA developer “Icefrog” and helped players make a smooth transition from DotA to Dota 2. Others who had helmed DotA’s development had gone on to make the incredibly popular rival MOBA League of Legends, and Valve saw opportunity do something similar.
The early version of Dota 2 made painstaking effort to remain true to the Warcraft 3 original, but improvements to the game were evident especially in terms of the game’s visuals. The original version of DotA included a long list of heroes to choose from and it took Valve years to fully catch up. Once that was out of the way, Valve added new heroes, buildings, items, and game mechanics that have made Dota 2 a much different experience from the original.
Now, Dota 2 fans celebrate the 10th year of their favorite game.
The International’s postponement limits any celebrations
Every year, Dota 2 fans never fail to break the record of the highest esports prize pool. The International 10 Battle Pass generated more than $40 million for the event’s prize pool. This is an amazing tally, but the event’s postponement leaves this anniversary somewhat hollow as The International 2011 was the game’s true coming out party.
The tournament could have been a great way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Dota 2. The Dota 2 community has proven to be one of the most loyal gaming communities and The International’s prize pool proves it every year. Even players who are too busy with work and family buy The International Battle Pass to support the esports scene despite Valve’s deepening indifference towards the game’s future.
Unfortunately, that means it’s somewhat fitting that Valve has done nothing to officially commemorate this anniversary.
Nina Forneloza
About Nina Forneloza
Nina Forneloza is a huge fan of gaming, but her favorite genres of games above all other are gacha games, first-person shooting games, and role-playing games. When she isn’t looking for a lucky pull in the latest gacha, you’re likely to find her in a competitive Valorant lobby or playing the latest big single-player RPG. Either way, you can be assured that she’ll be into it and ready to write about the experience.
View full profile
Read Also
Dota 2
Yandex to repeat?: BLAST SLAM VIII preview, predictions, and more
Michael Hassall
If you can believe it, we’re already on the eighth edition of BLAST SLAM, as BLAST SLAM VIII kicks off tomorrow (Sep. 29) pitting 16 of the world’s best Dota 2 teams against each other in what promises to be the first big challenge of this young season. Let’s face it: At PGL Wallachia, we were missing a lot of the heavy hitters. No TI15 champs, no PARIVISION, not BetBoom, ...
Dota 2
Unstoppable Yandex crush NAVI in one-sided PGL Wallachia finals
Michael Hassall
Team Yandex has swept the grand finals of the PGL Wallachia Season 9 Dota 2 tournament, defeating Natus Vincere (NAVI) in a 3-0 drubbing this past weekend (Sep. 27). As predicted, the revitalized Yandex, hot off the signing of former Team Falcons star Ammar "ATF" Al-Assaf, crushed their youthful opponents in a three-game sweep in the best-of-five finals. Here’s how it happened: After upsetting the star-studded LGD Gaming roster (albeit ...
Dota 2
Team Yandex to win it all? PGL Wallachia Season 9 Finals preview and predictions
Michael Hassall
The first big event after TI15, PGL Wallachia Season 9, wraps up this Sunday, Sep. 27, and it’s set to be a hell of a show. After a solid week of action, with some surprise eliminations along the way, we’re down to just three teams from the original 16. Team Yandex, LGD Gaming, and Natus Vincere (NAVI) remain, having battled through some big upsets to get there. Yandex are hot ...
Dota 2
MidOne to Play for Team Liquid at BLAST Slam 8, Replacing Nisha: Permanent or Stand-in?
Owen Harsono
Like most other Dota 2 teams, Team Liquid have also undergone roster changes after The International 2026, replacing Ace for Wisper. However, a swap in offlaners wasn’t the end, as veteran mid-laner MidOne has been registered under the team ahead of BLAST Slam 8, taking Nisha’s spot. Is MidOne only acting as a stand-in, or is this going to be a permanent move? Here’s what we know. On September 25, ...
Dota 2
PGL Wallachia Season 9 Playoffs preview and predictions
Michael Hassall
PGL Wallachia Season 9 is the first major tournament since the 2025/2026 Dota 2 season came to its conclusion at TI15, and with the roster shuffle still, well, shuffling, and top teams skipping the event while they get things finalized, it’s been an unusual tournament so far. With some surprising names in the playoffs (especially if you’ve been following the scene for the rest of the year) and the absence ...
Dota 2
ESIC hand down ruling in EWC Dota match-fixing case: Lifetime ban for coach as DarkMago gets a nickel
Michael Hassall
South American Dota 2 player Gonzalo "DarkMago" Herrera will be banned for five years from competitive Dota 2, with his coach Juan "Vintage" Angulo banned permanently, following the results of an The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) investigation. ESIC handed down the findings and rulings from its investigation into match-fixing allegations leveled at members of South American Dota 2 team PlayTime during the Esports World Cup on Sep. 10, in a ...
News
Polystrike Turns a Dota 2 Mod Into a Standalone Tactical Shooter
Hannan Mundia
After the community-made mod found success within the community, developer and publisher Robin Entertainment has decided to turn Polystrike into a proper standalone game. Community-made mods of games finding success within the respective game’s community is nothing new. However, only a handful of those mods are able to go on and become a standalone game. One of the more recent examples is The Forgotten City, which started as a mod ...
