Steam giant Valve is putting a lot of work into DOTA 2: Fundamentally changes all 124 heroes

DOTA 2 is the major competitor of League of Legends and a constant hit on Steam. Behind Steam and DOTA 2 is the same company: Valve. With a seemingly unremarkable update 7.36, the developers are currently reshaping the balance of DOTA 2. With facets and talents, two game-changing features are being introduced for all 124 heroes. This can be afforded because they are foregoing the large sums of money that cosmetics in the Battle Pass have brought in over the years.

What happens in the patch? The current patch 7.36 has fundamentally changed all 124 heroes in DOTA 2 in two ways.

• Each character now has an “Innate Ability”; previously, only 7 characters had one.
• Furthermore, all 124 characters now have two facets: players must choose one of the two variants that change the gameplay style of the chosen hero before a match starts.

Many saw the big update “New Frontiers” as DOTA 3:

Every Hero in DOTA 2 has 2 Facets

What does that look like in practice? Every hero in DOTA 2 has 2 facets. The hero Pudge, known as “Patchwork” to WoW players, now has to decide:

• Either his skill Dismember becomes stronger, where he hacks away wildly at an opponent while healing himself
• Or his famous hook deals more damage the closer he pulls his victim to him

The unique talent, in turn, makes the heroes fundamentally more individual. The abilities are active from the beginning of the match, and each hero has a unique talent.

Dawnbreaker can now reveal the entire map when dawn breaks.

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DOTA invests less working time in cosmetics, more in gameplay

Why is this happening now? Valve decided on a change of direction in DOTA 2 in June 2023. For years, they have invested their working time into cosmetic items so that the “Battle Pass” offers enough content to be an attractive purchase for players.

They were able to earn a lot of money with this, so that the tournament “The International” can offer an ever-increasing prize pool. After the new direction was adopted, the prize money of The International fell from $40 million to its lowest level in 10 years.

However, they recently decided not to invest their working time in cosmetics anymore, but in game systems. The results were already visible with the “New Frontiers” update.

With the current patch 7.36, Valve demonstrates once again what happens when one foregoes cosmetics and invests in the game.

In return, the prize money for winning “The International” has significantly decreased, but the MOBA now seems to be developing much better than before: Steam: DOTA 2 forgoes the Battle Pass – preferring to improve the game instead