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Dota 2's New Bloom update introduces new heroes and more
Valve's Dota 2 is about to receive another huge update, this one bringing two new heroes and a bevy of other features to the most played game on Steam. The New Bloom festival, which launches tomorrow for all Dota 2 players, includes a new beast to slay, the ability to "offer" unwanted items in the hopes of earning rare armor, and another map aesthetic variant centered on spring themes with East Asian influences. Most importantly, New Bloom marks the introduction of Terrorblade, the demon marauder, and Phoenix, the, ermm...phoenix, both brand-new heroes in Dota's world. Also new with the update: the ability to jump into any downloaded replay and take control of a character within it, changing it from a replay to a live game in which you can attempt to turn the tides of a loss or find a smarter path toward victory. Dota fans should consult the Day One, Day Two, and Day Three announcement posts for full details, as New Bloom includes quite a few other new features and tweaks.
The Soapbox: Stop ganking, you ganking gankers
For me, player vs. player interaction is a necessary component of any online game. The urge to engage with skilled human opponents is the reason I spent countless hours defending flags in World of Warcraft and likely the main motivating factor in my slide away from traditional MMOs and toward MOBAs like Dota 2 and Blizzard Entertainment's upcoming Heroes of the Storm. Simply put, I like a good fight. I especially like a good fight when it occurs unscripted and out in the wilds of the world. If you catch me unaware while I'm grinding out one of TERA's BAMs or plucking gold from an ore vein in Aion, I'll be more than happy to cross swords (or trade frostbolts) with you. Winning or losing isn't important to me; the constant threat of attack heightens my enjoyment of and connection to the game's universe. Unfortunately, open world PvP doesn't attract exclusively those people interested in fair fights. And in the games that make it possible, a certain small segment of players is working hard to ruin everyone else's good time. I speak, of course, of gankers.
Riot claims 27 million daily players for League of Legends
It's no secret that Riot Games's League of Legends is the biggest MOBA on the block, but just how big might come as something of a surprise. Riot has revealed that the League playerbase has now reached 27 million players daily. Player concurrency hits about 7.5 million players during high-traffic hours; for comparison, Valve's Dota 2, which most would consider League's primary competitor, sees about seven million players per month. The high numbers have done wonders for Riot's pocketbook, helping League to generate over $624 million in revenue in 2013.
Valve wants Dota 2 playable on Steam Controller
Valve Software readily admits its unconventional Steam Controller isn't likely to replace the keyboard and mouse PC gamers are familiar with, but the company still aims for a future in which the new controller can be used with such complex games as strategy hit Dota 2. "[Dota 2] is a really complex game that uses a good half of the keyboard," Valve engineer Jeff Bellinghausen told Polygon at CES. "And it's a real challenge, but would also be really exciting. To be able to play Dota from the couch is a really neat opportunity." Crucial to this plan is the upcoming debut of Steam Controller API support in Steamworks, which should make it easier for developers to tap the full functionality of the Steam Controller in their games. Even with the new API support, Bellinghausen believes it will be impossible to perfectly replicate the experience of using a keyboard and mouse with the Steam Controller. "We're thinking we'll get 90 percent of the way there," Bellinghausen told Polygon. "Team Fortress 2 players who are really happy with their mouse and keyboard, we're in no way saying that's changing or going away," Bellinghausen added."What we're trying to do is find a way to get close to that performance, but [from] your couch. That's the goal, to get close to that performance level."
The Stream Team: Stacking friends in Dota 2
When it comes to MOBAs, teamwork is everything. Adventuring into the solo queue in a game like Dota 2 is an invitation for pain and suffering; stacking a couple of friends in a party results in a much more successful (and fun) experience. Tune in tonight as Massively's Mike Foster recruits a few of his Dota 2 friends and takes a more team-based approach to Valve's immensely popular title. The action starts at 7:00 p.m. EST. Game: Dota 2 Host: Mike Foster Date: Friday, January 3rd, 2014 Time: 7:00 p.m. EST Enjoy our Steam Team video below.
Hackers harass League of Legends livestreamer with DDoS attacks and police calls
A vendetta against a livestreamer has caused real-world havoc. A user or group identifying itself as DERP has targeted a popular Twitch streamer, calling the police on him and performing DDoS attacks against the games he was playing on December 30th. The streamer's name is James Varga, and according to reports, the games he was broadcasting were shut down by hackers performing distributed denial of service attacks. These games included League of Legends, Dota 2, and those through Battle.net. Varga continued to communicate with DERP during this time, and either DERP or a third party escalated matters by calling 911 and claiming that Varga was holding hostages in his home. Varga was then briefly detained while the police searched his home, but he was released without charges. This is similar to an incident earlier last month when a World of Warcraft livestreamer was arrested after someone called the police on him to interrupt his stream.
Bridging the gap between casual and pro at the Chicago Dota 2 Winter Open
At Ignite Gaming Lounge in Chicago, Illinois, the crowd is losing its mind. It's grand finals of the Chicago Dota 2 Winter Open, a two-day, double-elimination, 16-team throwdown, and for some reason someone has just picked Meepo. For those of you who aren't in the Dota 2 loop, suffice to say that Meepo isn't a standard hero pick for a tournament. Picking Meepo in a match with $1,000 on the line is a lot like jumping out of a plane and wishing for a parachute -- an incredible, amazing story if it works and an embarrassing, painful death if it doesn't, with the odds heavily on the latter. The announcers, broadcasting the match simultaneously on Dota TV (Dota 2's in-game spectating client) and Twitch, are dumbfounded. The chat channels are exploding. And as everyone witnesses the Meepo gamble pay off in the most incredible way, the excitement only expands and intensifies. But perhaps what's most special about this Meepo pick, about this final game between two local teams that have bested challenger after challenger, is not the risky strategy or the money on the line. What's special is that anyone is watching it at all.
Steam kicks off holiday sale with BioShock, Batman, more
It's that time of year again, boys and girls. No, not time to express your love for the people who raised you, but instead, it's time for Steam's holiday sale. This year's sale runs from December 19 to January 3 and as in previous iterations, it offers a wide swath of discounts. First, there are the daily discounts, which collect a handful of games and slash their prices. At the moment, you could pick up BioShock Infinite for $10 or Batman: Arkham Origins for $25. Then there are the Flash sales, which usually offer larger discounts than the daily discounts, though they only appear for eight hours. Right now you could pick up Counter-Strike: Global Offensive for $3.74, but eight hours from now you'll be out of luck. Not just a sale, Steam's holiday celebration is also a community event. Every eight hours three games will be offered up for the community to vote on. Whichever receives the most votes gets a deep, public discount. Voting also entitles you to one free Snow Globe card with which can unlock rare items in Steam games such as Dota 2 and Team Fortress 2. Or you could simply horde your cards until you have enough to craft the Snow Globe 2013 badge. This won't help you in-game, but it's a nice reminder of how you spent this year's holiday season.
Dota 2 drops sign-ups, now available to all
Valve finally made Dota 2 available to all, meaning the MOBA's rigmarole of keys, invites, and sign-ups is a thing of the past. Sure, getting past Valve's digital gates hasn't exactly been a case of finding Willy Wonka's golden tickets, but at least this way no-one has to stuff their arteries with chocofats just to play Dota 2. Anyway, if you want to join the hordes of heroes duking it out in Steam's most active game, head onto its store page and click that big ol' green button to start downloading it. As explained on the Dota 2 blog, Valve's been improving the game's infrastructure through beta and past the official launch in July. By gradually increasing Dota 2's playerbase, Valve ensured its foundations remained up to the job. So, with server upgrades and a "huge number of enhancements" recently completed, the time came to open up the game to all. It'll be interesting to see what that does for the game's numbers: According to Valve, Dota 2 currently boasts 6.5 million unique monthly users. For comparison, Riot Games' League of Legends had 32 million monthly players as of October 2012, hitting a staggering peak of 5 million people playing at the same time in March 2013.
Dota 2's Frostivus celebration is coming
Valve has announced that Dota 2's holiday-themed Frostivus event is on its way, though exact details are still somewhat sparse. The announcement, made via the official Dota 2 website, says only that "Frostivus is coming." The page hints at content to come, including what appear to be new crafting items and some sort of gift exchange in addition to the obligatory event-themed chests. The frosty, snow-covered map of Frostivus 2012 is also likely to return. Fans of Dota 2 will remember that last year's Frostivus event was canceled due to an influx of gift-snatching Greevils. We'll just have to wait and see if the same tragedy befalls this year's festivities.
Developers respond to Riot's streaming restrictions for pro players [Updated]
Riot Games' new contract with professional League of Legends players prevents those players from streaming certain games during the LCS (League Championship Series) season. Banned titles include Dota 2, Hearthstone, Awesomenauts, World of Warcraft, StarCraft II, and many, many more. News of the contract broke earlier this week. Since that time, a couple of developers associated with games on the banned list have responded to Riot's rules in letters to website OnGamers, which broke the original story. Here's a clip of the lengthy response from Awesomenauts co-creator Jasper Koning: We are disappointed to see Riot impose restrictions on the spare time of its LOL Championship Series players. It's understandable Riot as a company wants to protect its interests, but the way they're doing it now is decidedly unsportsmanlike, anti-competitive, and it sets a bad precedent. And here's S2's (Heroes of Newerth) Marc DeForest: We view eSports differently - it is a platform for competition, growth, and the collective celebration of video gaming passion. We do not view it as a leveraging tool for anti-competitive and monopolistic practices. S2 Games will continue to support the eSports idea as a whole, not just our own specific interests in it. Riot has confirmed the terms of the contract but has not responded to further updates or fan criticism. [Update: Riot has announced that it is changing LCS players' contracts due in part to community feedback. Under the new rules, players will be able to stream any games they want as long as they are not accepting sponsorship from other studios to promote those titles.]
Perfect World ends the quarter strong, looks to Dota 2's China release
Perfect World Entertainment, the China-based publisher behind games like Perfect World International, Neverwinter, Star Trek Online, and Champions Online, ended the last financial quarter in a strong place. Citing the Chinese release of Swordsman Online and Saint Seiya Online as driving factors, Perfect World claimed $136.2 million in revenue and $19.8 million in net profit -- up from last year's marks of $114.2 million and $14.2 million respectively. Perfect World also expressed its hope for even better quarters to come thanks to big launches in the pipeline. It is currently localizing Neverwinter for a Chinese release and will be overseeing Valve's Dota 2 as it makes its way into Chinese markets.
Dota 2 players to enjoy newfound futility in Stanley Parable announcer pack
Indie developer Davey Wreden revealed that the next Dota 2 announcer pack update will feature the dry, understated wit of Kevan Brighting, narrator of the off-kilter PC hit The Stanley Parable. Wreden and The Stanley Parable co-developer William Pugh are currently writing the script for the upcoming add-on. A release date has not been announced. Portal's GLaDOS voiced a previous Dota 2 announcer pack, chiding players with demoralizing comments throughout every match. It's unlikely that Brighting will offer much more in the way of encouragement, but those who enjoyed the mind-warping game he narrated will get a kick out of his take on the proceedings.
Dota 2 gets new heroes, crafting, and Diretide
Last week, the folks at Valve apologized to the Dota 2 community for silently skipping the game's Halloween-themed Diretide event. In the apology, the Dota team promised that Diretide would go live with the next big update, which they hinted would include a bunch of other features the community would be happy to see. Today, Valve announced the update, titled Three Spirits. And true to the Dota team's word, it's a big one. It includes two new heroes in the form of Earth Spirit and Ember Spirit (counterparts to the existing Storm Spirit), an in-game coaching mechanic that enables teams and individuals to improve their play, and a crafting and socketing system that provides for customizing existing items or combining unneeded ones to make something better and more useful. The patch also brings a new showcase view of matches, a lane-picker, colorblind mode, new training missions and more. Oh, and yes, Diretide is coming; the event runs from November 14th to November 28th. Check out the full patch notes on the official Three Spirits site.
Valve responds to fan outrage at Dota 2's missing Diretide
Halloween events might just seem like a trivial little thing to you, but they are serious business in Dota 2. Valve didn't turn on the game's Diretide event this year, and the resulting fan outrage could probably be bottled up and used to start fires. So what in the world happened? A week or so out from Halloween proper, the company has finally addressed the controversy in a new blog post explaining why the event failed to materialize. In short: The team was working on a major update that was meant to be ready around Halloween, so the assumption was that it would be easier just to launch that. Then it got delayed, and there was no time to stop working on that and start working on Diretide. Once the time came and the event was still missing, what happened was more or less a matter of figuring out how to fix it rather than simply stating that the company was aware. It looks as if the game's next update will contain a somewhat belated Diretide, which may not fix the problem but will at least help ameliorate lingering hurt feelings.
Valve 'underestimated' desire for Dota 2 event, explains lack of Diretide
Last year, Valve ran a special in-game event for Dota 2, called "Diretide," to coincide with the real-world event of Halloween. This year, Diretide was nowhere to be found, and it's only been just recently that Valve explained why. So why no Diretide this year? According to a post on the Dota 2 blog, a "significant" update was taking up most of the team's focus and energy. The team reasoned that ceasing work on the update to work on Diretide "seemed like something you would actually be unhappy with us for." As for why Valve waited until now to explain themselves: "You were already mad and disappointed in the lack of Diretide. Telling you that you weren't getting it at all wouldn't have really helped much," the post states. To make amends, Diretide will be coming to Dota 2 with the next update. When that update will hit, however, is a question currently lacking an answer. The blog also notes that, "while we always want the community to tell us exactly how we're doing, this is probably a good time to stop cc'ing innocent car manufacturers with your messages." The post doesn't mention it, but one Dota 2 developer community member has also tweeted that he'll involve the police if he gets another call about Diretide on his personal number. So, you know, maybe stop harassing people. Update: We incorrectly referred to the individual who received harassment via phone as a Dota 2 developer, when they are, in fact, not. The text has been updated to reflect the correction.
DotA 2 pink war dog courier sells for $38,000
Pricey items aren't just for MMOs -- MOBAs are getting in on the action as well. DotA 2 secured its place in the ranks of titles where in-game items have sold for exorbitant real-life sums when an ethereal flame pink war dog sold for a whopping $38,000. The war dog is a courier, an item used to transport items from your team to your base as well as from the base to your team. Why did this particular virtual item fetch such a hefty amount? According to the seller, this item is a very rare combination of the most sought-after courier type, effect, and color; only four others are known to exist.
World of Tanks named online game of the year at Golden Joysticks
World of Tanks, the ever-popular tank-based MMO from Wargaming.net, is 2013's online game of the year according to the Golden Joysticks. The title beat out heavy hitters like League of Legends and Dota 2 to take the crown. Here's Al King on the victory: You have to play together as a team. We're rolling out increasingly aggressively across the world -- we have 70 million active users. It's truly democratic, we have a tremendously loyal community. They just did everything we asked of them, they're phenomenal, and we love them. Other big winners? Assassin's Creed: Liberation (best handheld game, The Last of Us (best storytelling), and Grand Theft Auto V (game of the year).
The Stream Team: Decisionally challenged weather edition, October 7 - 13, 2013
I don't know about you, but in my neck of the woods Mother Nature is suffering some kind of identity crisis. In the span of a single day we have had bone-chilling cold and frost, sun-scorching heat, and monsoon-inspired rainstorms. Every time we have a season-appropriate cold snap, the second I go to remove my air-conditioner, we have a blistering heat wave. People were pumpkin harvesting in shorts for heaven's sakes! Is it fall? Or is it summer? If the weather is any indication, we need to institute a new season. We could call it Summall. Or maybe Falmer. Then people can just expect to employ heavy coats and shorts within hours. Like they do in Colorado! Like the weather of late, I'll admit to being decisionally challenged at times (especially when trying to pick what to do in a game with so many options!). Luckily, for any who suffer that same affliction, your favorite Stream Team hosts will never conflict on the Massively TV schedule. So who's playing what when this week? Check out the schedule and see!
Dota 2 First Blood update brings LAN support and GLaDOS
Valve will update its Dota 2 client with the First Blood patch on September 23, giving players new weapons, items, announcers and ways to play, while also balancing the game overall. The big highlights coming with First Blood are LAN support, a new Captain's Draft mode, a refined Armory browsing experience and a GLaDOS announcer voice. Captain's Draft will have two teams, each of which nominates a captain, take turns banning, picking and counter-picking heroes from a randomized pool of 24. The new Armory will let you filter items by attributes like quality, rarity and type. The Dota 2 store will also be receiving an update with First Blood, which includes new community-created content and a Portal Pack. The Portal Pack will include an Aperture Science-themed HUD skin, some "Wardcores" (wards made to look like Aperture Science cores) and the aforementioned GLaDOS announcer voice. Unfortunately, no cake was mentioned as part of the First Blood update. If anyone tells you there's going to be cake... well, you know by now.
