We have finally crowned a champion in the race to a billion Dota 2 games played for a single hero, but you can hardly call it a race. Fan favorite Pudge reached the remarkable milestone today, on May 6, a huge 300 million games ahead of the next-most-played hero. A whopping 4,935 days after his early release in Dota 2‘s beta, The Butcher remains the most popular hero in the MOBA by a very significant margin, according to the stats site Dotabuff. For the longest time, Sniper and Windranger remained in the games-played contest but were overtaken by carry hero Phantom Assassin recently; however ..read more

Official Valve blogs often signal the arrival of new gameplay patches in Dota 2, but that hasn’t been the case for a while now, and Valve has today continued the baiting spree with its latest blog post about a community vote for skins. While the update may not feature any gameplay changes, it marked the first-ever feature carried over to the full game from Dota Labs: High-visibility hero HP bars. However, fans who saw the patch’s size before reading the blog post got their hopes up again, resulting in fan comments such as “Hurray, one GB patch… For nothing ..read more

Despite their exit from ESL One Birmingham in the semifinals, OG enjoyed some spectacular games in front of the UK crowd. In an exclusive interview with Dot Esports, British Dota star Ari explored how the team built a stronger mentality, improved their performance, and made mistakes in a Greggs store. Unsurprisingly, Ari was showered with love from his home crowd, an experience he described as ‘weird,’ ‘strange,’ but, ultimately, ‘fun.’ The player also expressed his delight at the relief from jet lag and long travel times. However, these benefits didn’t overshadow the intensity of the game. A ..read more

Following their loss to Falcons in ESL One Birmingham’s lower bracket quarterfinals, Team Liquid captain Neta “33” Shapira reflected on their tournament exit and overall performance, acknowledging that on the day, Falcons “were the better team,” but confessing he’s “pretty disappointed in ESL.”   Team Liquid’s first match of the day against Heroic saw them progress to the quarterfinal with a 2:1 win. In his exclusive interview with Dot Esports, Neta explained that the team felt prepared for their game, with a plan for their draft and accurate expectations of their opponents. In anal ..read more

As a Dota 2 player with a history intertwined with controversy, some expect Ivan “Pure” Moskalenko to be cocky or perhaps avoidant of their past relative to their future. However, as he approaches the final weekend of ESL One Birmingham, Pure is ready to shake off the old and welcome the new. A carry for Tundra Esports in Birmingham on loan from BetBoom, Pure has played an integral part in the team’s advances through the competition. Despite his talent, he has become ensnared in controversy and criticism since he began his professional career. April 2022 saw his contract at Virtus.pro termina ..read more

Initial disappointment over Dota 2‘s recent Crownfall update has melted away over the weekend, with most players more than happy with the Cavern Crawl-like event and the smorgasbord of cosmetic items that can be earned without paying a cent. Crownfall dropped on April 19 after what felt like an agonizing wait with multiple teases, but before diving into the new story and event, many players took the update at face value. Without the release of the supposed new hero Ringmaster or a balance patch, fans immediately dismissed Crownfall as a waste. Well, after just two days of exploring the event ..read more

Just hours after teasing a lore-filled comic, Valve finally unleashed the Crownfall update for Dota 2, though it wasn’t quite the earth-shattering arrival many players anticipated. While excitement ran high for new hero Ringmaster, major gameplay changes, and an in-game event, the initial rollout of Crownfall—dubbed “The Markets of Midgate”—seems to be more focused on skins and cosmetics. The update delivers on the promised Arcana skins for Skywrath Mage and Vengeful Spirit, alongside a battle pass-like feature and a treasure trove of cosmetics. But, the new hero, an event like Aghanim’s Laby ..read more

Dota 2 players are becoming restless while waiting for the Crownfall patch. Promised for 2024’s first quarter, Crownfall’s arrival has been a rollercoaster of anticipation and delay. After teasing a mid-April release, Valve posted a blog today and sent shivers down eager spines—only to reveal a 118-page comic. Featuring the Dark Skywrath Mage and the Vengeful Spirit with wings as Arcana skins, the comic undeniably amped up the hype for the upcoming patch. However, some Dota 2 players expressed frustration, fearing Valve might be leveraging the lore dump to postpone Crownfall yet again ..read more

Under-fire Dota 2 pro player Tommy “Taiga” Le has been dropped from South American squad Leviatán today after just a month as the fallout from match-fixing allegations continues to leave a mark on the 25-year-old’s storied career. Taiga was unceremoniously dumped from Leviatán on April 16, with the organization stating on Facebook the parting was mutual, though the statement did make it clear the allegations had taken their toll. “Leviatán rejects any unsportsmanlike attitude and we reinforce our values based on integrity,” a translated version of the post said. Indonesian player Kenny “Xephe ..read more

Dota 2‘s ESL Pro Tour continues with ESL One Birmingham 2024, with 12 teams converging on the Resorts World Arena for a shot at the lion’s share of a million dollars and valuable EPT points ahead of the Esports World Cup in July. The likes of Gamin Gladiators, Team Liquid, Falcons, Tundra, Team Spirit, and recent Elite League champs Xtreme Gaming will be in attendance as LAN Dota makes its long-awaited return after a recent break ..read more