Dota 2

Released on July 9, 2013 by Valve

Developed by Valve

Every day, millions of players worldwide enter battle as one of over a hundred Dota heroes. And no matter if it's their 10th hour of play or 1,000th, there's always something new to discover. With regular updates that ensure a constant evolution of gameplay, features, and heroes, Dota 2 has truly taken on a life of its own.

In partnership with Valve, Netflix is releasing a new show called DOTA: Dragon’s Blood which looks to be an Anime styled sword and magic show. If this is as good as the Castlevania show on Netflix, we should be in luck! Many years ago Valve announced a partnership with JJ Abraham’s where he and Gabe discussed brining Valve properties to life and nothing ever seemed to come from that so it’s good Valve is making something happen here.

Who do I send my letters to for a Portal show?

The new Valve joint comes to Netflix March 25th.

"The sweeping fantasy series tells the story of Davion, a renowned Dragon Knight devoted to wiping the scourge from the face of the world.... Read All


http://cdn.dota2.com/apps/dota2/images/blogfiles/reborn_beta_day1.png
Presumably built on the new Source 2 engine that has been seen in screenshots a few times over the years, Dota 2 Reborn will bring a total interface overhaul and some new ways to play.

Not a ton of details are available yet, but for some of the interface changes you can see the beta page here: https://www.dota2.com/reborn/part1/

I'll be glad to see Source 2 in use, and can't wait for Valve to count to 3 and give us something else built with it!

Announcement post: http://blog.dota2.com/2015/06/dota-2-reborn/


"FREE TO PLAY is a feature-length documentary that follows three professional gamers from around the world as they compete for a million dollar prize in the first Dota 2 International Tournament. In recent years, E Sports has surged in popularity to become one of the most widely-practiced forms of competitive sport today. A million dollar tournament changed the landscape of the gaming world and for those elite players at the top of their craft, nothing would ever be the same again. Produced by Valve, the film documents the challenges and sacrifices required of players to compete at the highest level."

You can watch it right now on YouTube linked above or download it on... Read All


"FREE TO PLAY is a feature-length documentary that follows three professional gamers from around the world as they compete for a million dollar prize in the first Dota 2 International Tournament. In recent years, E Sports has surged in popularity to become one of the most widely-practiced forms of competitive sport today. A million dollar tournament changed the landscape of the gaming world and for those elite players at the top of their craft, nothing would ever be the same again. Produced by Valve, the film documents the challenges and sacrifices required of players to compete at the highest level."

Apparently Valve is getting into the business of doing everything... Read All


http://www.brokenjoysticks.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/dota2-wallpaper.jpg
The past several months of dota have been good. Extremely good. The stability of v6.78 created a strong dependable meta game and a fierce competitive scene.

But all good things must end right?

Hopefully to make room for better things.
V6.79 brings a boat load of changes that have turned the meta upside down. The next few months will be an anything goes slug fest as we see old tactics become obsolete and new ones rise in their place.
dont believe it? Check this chart that tracks some if the most significant effects on W/L ratio.
http://i.imgur.com/hLTqLC8.png

I'd love to talk about the changes in depth and look at the new meta and theory craft. But I'll save it for another... Read All


http://i.imgur.com/oHQ557W.jpg
Recently, Dota 2 left beta for its final free to play release on Windows. During its Beta it wasn't available for Linux or Mac but recently Valve made a test build available for both platforms. Recently I downloaded both clients on Linux and Mac to give them a shot. If you have Steam for Mac or Linux you can simple download the Dota 2 test from your games list.

Mac Test Build

This build works well enough that I recommend it for Mac users if they prefer gaming from their Laptop or iMac. That said, I don't recommend it for serious Dota 2 playing but if you want to have a bit of fun with bots or friends, it works well.

A few issues I noticed:

When the character selection... Read All


http://cdn2.steampowered.com/v/gfx/apps/570/extras/gamepage_image.jpg?t=1373475257
Now you can finally play it! I jest, I think at this point, everyone who wanted it already has it. Now, however, the beta is officially over and anyone can play with or without a beta code. It's odd to me that this game that's been the subject of major eSports tournaments wasn't officially released until today.

The big news for me is that there are official Mac and Linux versions on the way! They're currently testing it internally and will be releasing them soon. There may be more beta out of this thing yet.

http://www.dota2.com/thebetaisover


http://i.imgur.com/jeVieLD.jpg
"The first team invited to The International are the returning champions, Invictus Gaming. Twelve more teams will be announced over the coming days. Just like in last year’s event, the winners of the East and West Qualifiers will each receive an invite. As you’ve probably noticed, that only adds to 15 teams. Right before The International begins, the Wild Card event will determine the final spot in a match between the runner-ups of each qualifier.

The West Qualifier will be hosted by GDStudio from May 13th through the 19th and the East Qualifier by BeyondTheSummit from May 20th through the 26th. All matches will also be available for free through DotaTV.
"

I am SERIOUSLY... Read All


http://www.develop-online.net/news/43261/Jason-Holtman-leaves-Valve
http://www.gameranx.com/updates/id/12754/article/valve-steambox-controller-engineer-jeri-ellsworth-fired/

Reports dribbling in regarding large changes in staffing at Valve, at least some of which are in the group focusing on hardware.

Anyone up for some speculation?


http://i.imgur.com/eXxIo.jpg
Seems like Valve is giving out a ton of DoTA 2 invites and I have 5 to give away for anyone that wants them. Just ask in the comments and I will hook you up!