For me, Patrick, this DOTA 2 clip is really cool. Even though I have little knowledge of the game and I generally find streams boring.
What’s it about? A video is currently popular on Reddit that shows DOTA 2 gameplay. For me, it’s actually more of a reason to skip the video. While I really like the MOBA League of Legends, I couldn’t connect with DOTA 2. You really have to familiarize yourself with the heroes and their abilities to understand what’s actually happening on the screen.
But this video is different. The title on Reddit is: “Dota 2 caster works great to Eminem”. Because the commentators (casters) in eSports titles really get into it, I had an idea of what to expect. And that made me curious.
What does the video show? It starts with the intro of “The Real Slim Shady”, a song by the popular rapper Eminem. As the song begins, gameplay from a DOTA 2 tournament fits perfectly. Instead of Eminem, you hear the commentator of the tournament. The caster ODPixeL comments on the game at high speed, but remains understandable, similar to what Eminem does in his song. Players calculated that the caster in this clip reaches 253 words per minute, which is about 4.2 words per second.
This combination of DOTA commentary and “The Real Slim Shady” works surprisingly well. I felt super entertained for the nearly 3 minutes. Even though I didn’t know any of the heroes or their abilities beforehand and generally have little knowledge of the game.
Nonetheless, the gameplay was also interesting because of the atmosphere created by the song. A tight team fight, with a lot of “back and forth”. It illustrates how much influence eSports commentators have on the enjoyment of viewers. Even if the video is already older, it is still enjoyable to watch today.
What do viewers of the video say? In the comments on YouTube, people praise the video. “This is the greatest thing I’ve ever seen,” it says.
On Reddit, someone writes, “At some points, I thought he was rapping.”
“Can someone confirm for us, who know nothing about DOTA 2, that the guy is not actually rapping but commenting on the game?” asks a user. It is then confirmed that the caster is indeed commenting.
The rapper caster ODPixeL has been praised for his talent elsewhere and compared to a rapper. As in this video, which has already been viewed over 700,000 times.
DOTA 2 also entertains people who have no clue about the game in other places. This defeat is considered the dumbest surrender of all time.
