Our annual The International blog posts always started with TI lauded as the “biggest esports event of the year”. It was always a celebration of Dota, the showcase of the highest level of play in the deepest, most complex online game there is and we believe that this is still true. However, it is impossible to deny that this year TI was a bit lacklustre and today we would like to discuss some things that could return it to its former glory.
The frequency and the sheer size of updates the last couple of years were awesome. The introduction of facets and the increase in the map size made the game considerably more interesting to play at all levels. It also led to some balance issues and we feel like there are two main ways to address this.
One is to methodically and meticulously balance a patch, starting some time ago before a TI. This was the approach taken previously and to a certain extent it was the approach this year as well. Making a “perfect” patch is impossible, but striving for it over the course of the year to culminate in a Tournament with high hero and strategy diversity is possible. This year roughly 17% of heroes were completely ignored, with multiple heroes having 90%+ contest rate.
The problem with this approach is that it leads to a rather stale pub meta and no new content updates. Personally, we believe that balancing around the professional scene is good for the professional scene, but it doesn’t necessarily make for a better game for us, the players. Valve’s approach the last couple of years, one we fully welcome, is to cater towards the regular players, so perhaps the slow and steady route simply isn’t an option.
In that case, maybe having a TI-specific patch, released very close to the tournament start could be a solution. Professional players are the quickest to adapt and being flexible is definitely one of the more important skills in Dota. Let flexibility and adaptation be the main focus, rather than the execution of the best strategy.
We firmly believe that a new, Major patch released a week or so before the tournament could result in a very weird, but a very interesting TI, with a clash of many ideas and playstyles. Would the level of play be the same, as when teams get months to prepare? Certainly not. Would it be more entertaining? Possibly, and it is a risk worth taking in our opinion.
The Group Stage this year was very similar to the Group Stage we had in The International 2023 with one key difference — there were less teams. In our opinion it made the Group Stage very low stakes and not particularly fun to watch.
In years prior, with only two groups, the seeding was the main focus and because of it they were exciting, while also allowing for more games. Last year, the groups were exciting because one of the teams would get eliminated.
This year, we had neither. Four groups of four battling it out for nothing, but a chance to select an opponent for a single BO3 to decide their seeding is just a weird format. It is not “unfair” by any means and every single victory and loss were well deserved. From a spectator side of experience, though, it just felt like busywork: games played for the sake of games being played.
Given how it is Dota and it is definitely a fun game to watch, there is nothing particularly wrong with it, but having Group Stage matter more is certainly something we want to see next year.
Finally, there is a question of Grand Finals and it’s been said before, but we firmly believe that the most important series of the tournament deserves its own day. Yes, it will somewhat eliminate the upper bracket advantage and yes, it will extend the tournament. However, it is a compromise that should be at least considered.
Last time we had an excellent TI Grand Finals series was back in 2021 and at this point we have to admit that coming into a BO5 potentially exhausted after the lower bracket finals is just not good for Dota as a spectator sport.
We want our athletes fresh and at their best, not fatigued. It could still lead to a sweep, it could all still end in a boring series, but at least we would be certain it is because one team is that much better, not because one team just had to go through almost three hours of intense Dota for a chance to play more Dota.
We deliberately didn’t touch on what many consider to be an elephant in the room — the prize pool. Because, if we are being honest, we don’t think it is what matters to TI. It is definitely a Tournament status thing and maybe some players are better motivated by bigger rewards and maybe they would be playing better, but we don’t believe it has a major influence on the level of play.
The International is a festival of Dota. It is when history is made, when the champions are crowned and when the community comes together to enjoy the highest possible level of competitive play. The only thing the prize pool changes is the comparison to other games and potentially the viewership numbers from people checking out what all the fuss is about.
For us as Dota players, though, does it really matter whether there are more people watching? Does having more viewers enhance the actual experience of seeing what incredible plays the best players in the world manage to pull off and what crazy strategies they try to utilise? Personally, I don’t think so, but I do think there are ways to make the Biggest Esports Event of the Year even more interesting and entertaining.