Tag: Dota 2

Categories
Blog

A Noob is Back: The Bali Major

I decided to catch up with Dota 2 during the Bali Major this year. It has been five years since I’ve watched Dota. (It’s been even longer since I played it.) I’ve really been enjoying Dota again. Here are some of the things I’ve noticed.

First, the game has totally changed. I guess it’s normal that an ongoing game changes but the amount of changes that has happened in Dota is staggering.

The biggest change are changes to the map. The lanes are huge now. In the past, the lanes were narrow and they were confined. The trees are much more sparse especially in the jungles.

Another big change is that there is a warp that goes from the off-lane jungle to the safe-lane jungle. I’m trying to understand how the pros are utilizing this warp. It seems like it is used after killing Roshan.

Roshan is another change that has been made. Roshan used to be located in the river but now there are two spots where Roshan spawns in the safe-lanes. I’m still not sure if he spawns in both or if it’s only in one. I’m not an expert and I have done zero research into these changes.

There are also some objective “fountains” located throughout the map. It takes a moment for the hero to do the objective and they get something from the objective. I am not 100% sure how these work.

Gems have also changed a bit. They seem to spawn in the river as they always have but there are some other spawn points.

The last change that I can think of, remember this is coming from a self-proclaimed amateur who has been away from things for some time; there are some new heroes.

It is cool to see new heroes. One of them rolls up into a ball and it’s a swashbuckler. There is a lizard that grabs a hero and slams them into the ground like Hulk did to Loki. There are others but I haven’t gotten a good idea of what powers they have because as I have only been watching streams for about a week.

I’ve been really digging the teams and the casters for the Bali Major. Dota has gone through some tectonic shifts in the last few years not only because of the version upgrades but the community has changed as well.

I feel like the community is strong. Is it as strong as it once was? I don’t think so but I still think that Dota has a strong community and the game is well made enough to withstand the test of time.

Categories
Blog

Things to Do in Omaha When You’re…a Gamer

catalystI have been thinking of ways to inject myself into the Omaha gaming community which has been difficult because being a gamer means that I like spending time alone playing games. I have been going to Catalyst: A Weekly Social Gaming Meet-up at Portal LAN Arcade on 84th Street. Nerdtron, a local gaming group, is behind organizing Catalyst. Nerdtron is run by my buddy Cay who is forever working tirelessly to make nerd-dom more bearable in Omaha.

The event aims to get people together and do what they love – game. There is some emphasis on eSports at the event, which appealed to me, because I play Dota 2, while most of the other gamers were playing League of Legends, Hearthstone, and Heroes of the Storm I did find a couple of Dota compatriots.

cybacThe coolest thing about the event is that Portal LAN Arcade really just feels like a Japanese Manga cafe.  I loved going to Manga cafe’s in Japan. I always felt like I was at home. I didn’t need to try and be someone else. The biggest asset of playing games, for many people, is by playing a character you can be a different version of yourself – you can be the person you want to be instead of who you are.

Playing at Portal Lan Arcade is a welcoming experience with a bunch of networked PCs in one section of the building and console game in a separate section. They have a small selection of drinks and snacks at the front counter. The prices for admission are pretty fair in my opinion.

Since winter is coming around the corner, I really need a weekly event to keep me from going stir crazy during these awful winter months in Omaha. I think going to Portal LAN Arcade will keep me from becoming too much of a hermit. Come out of the darkness and join me at Portal LAN Arcade next Friday!

Categories
Dota Love

Checking Out the Dota 2 6.84 Patch

Dota 6.84

Sorry, the audio sucks in this video. I’m still working out the kinks.

Categories
Blog

What is it about Dota 2…?

Year Beast 2015

Year Beast 2015I have been playing Dota 2 for over a year now…or ten months. (According to dotabuff.com) Dota 2 is a multiplayer online battle arena, or MOBA. What does that mean?

You have one hero that you control and you are on a team of five. There are many other ways of playing Dota 2 besides 5 v 5. Ten months seems like a long time to have played a game, but I assure you that there are a lot of people who played this game before there was need for a numeral at the end of the title.

The reason for this article is that I am on my way to 100 wins. I am at 95 to be exact. I have played a lot of Dota 2 and I am sure that this small mountain will be conquered…when is the question. And, should I stream my journey?

I don’t play Dota 2 like a lot of people. I am a slave to the in-game load-outs. I almost exclusively play with the official ones, which are insanely out of date. Lately, I have been grinding out the All-Hero Challenge.

dragon poems When I get into funks, like over the last week or so, I usually end up selecting Random for a few games. I was trying to finish the Sniper challenge for the All-Hero Challenge and went on a seven or eight game losing streak with Sniper. It wasn’t until I went back to playing a few games as random heroes that I was able to end my streak.

I have also been lurking around the Dota 2 community board on Neo Gaf. It gives me some popcorn for the night while I am plugging away at work. Usually, this board is also a sanctuary for Dota 2 information without the flame. And, from a game that is well known for the amount of acid it’s community spits, that is a compliment.

I might start doing some Twitch stuff for Dota 2. The problem is that I am not knowledgeable about the subject whatsoever. Even with a year of play, I would not say that I am anywhere above novice in rank.

I’d love to get a group of five people to play with but with my night schedule it’s hard. Maybe I should try to stream it on Nico-Nico and practice my Japanese. （笑）

Well, I just thought I’d write about my latest passion, since I haven’t written in a while. Maybe we can explore together what it is about Dota 2 that keeps me coming back. Cheers.

Categories
Blog

The International 2014 – The Purpleing

the international 2014 dota 2

the international 2014 dota 2This year more than any other before. are we close to realizing the dream of millions of eSports enthusiasts out there – eSports is…getting there. After watching The International 2014 for over a week, I realized that eSports is a thing. With this years championship being telecast on ESPN – even though it was played on one of the “foreign sports” sister stations – you know the one’s that show cricket or snooker. I had a great time watching The International this year, not that I had watched it any other year, but this year was a lot of fun.

I was introduced to the players and their teams who have made Dota 2 such a captivating game to watch. I learned their play styles and I learned how they played with their teammates. I watched as Dendi tended to march ahead to his own beat. He played intelligently; usually. Of course, because of this kind of play style he got killed in situations that he probably should have not been in. I loved watching Rabbit play Slark. I can’t remember how many kills he got, but he beefed the hell out of that Slark and merc’d a metric ton of dudes. Rabbit became my favorite player. And, this is what I find fascinating about Dota 2, I ended up liking Rabbit because of that Slark game. Not because I ever heard him speak or knew anything about his personality. Not because I knew all about his story, but just because I saw one superhuman feat that made me appreciate his ability. Not only to appreciate his ability, but appreciate the amount of work that he must have to put into getting his game to that level.

teams invited to the international 2014At the beginning of the tournament, I was caught up in the torrent of Liquid support. But, later as I saw the uproar grow more and more nationalistic, bordering on xenophobic, did I end up looking for another team to follow. Part of the nationalistic fervor behind Dota 2 comes from the very real problems of communication and schedule, because of these two issues most of the teams tend to be from the same country, or at least from the same lingua-franca.

Towards the end of The International, I decided that Newbee was the team for me and I’d start cheering for them. They ended up winning the tournament, but I didn’t feel that great feeling of fandom when your team wins. That feeling when the team that you bleed with, the team that makes you cry like a battered lover, the team that makes you want to believe that your guys – your friends- could win win’s.

the audience at the international 2014
Yea! eSports!

These feelings are only feelings that a person gets when they watch sports. Dota 2 has become a sport for me. I don’t think that means that eSports has arrived. I think that I have become one of the unwashed masses that has come to Gabe Newell – that bearded, fat Jesus – and asked him to wash me and prepare me for that heaven that The International 2015 will be.