Learning how to play Dota is getting smoother

The addictive Dota 2 video game is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) developed as a sequel to Defense of the Ancients (DotA) in 2013. Centered around the play-off between two five-player teams and their battles, Dota is among the greatest games of all time due to its depth and complexity.

Dota 2 achieved many milestones, won multiple awards, and it gathered a global and tight-knit fan & player base, generating millions of dollars in revenues. Thanks to that, the game regularly receives massive upgrades and overhauls, but, unfortunately, sometimes they disappoint.

For instance, most players never got over how the 2019 Outlanders patch suffered from obsolete mechanics and various errors. Moreover, the lack of the tutorial’s quality and accuracy resulted in the community making its own and collecting resources for the production.

However, Valve isn’t known for sitting back and waiting. It is why they announced another extensive update that should explain this perplexing and demanding game to new players. Overall, the announcement was lengthy and comprehensive, paying attention to every detail and confirming the release for March 25.

Valve shared their awareness that Dota 2 is too complicated to receive typical tutorials. It is why they are implementing substantial changes, transforming how newcomers will experience the game. With these updates, many complexities will be eased or briefly explained, ensuring players can absorb and comprehend the gameplay.

The New Player Mode is perhaps the highlight of the latest update. The goal is to limit the number of information newbies have to take in when playing the game for the first time. Valve used the old Limited Mode as a starting point for developing a New Player Mode.

That means that the new one will include a small and stable hero pool allowing players to get familiar with the basics without being introduced to novel heroes and skills with each game. Plus, they are boosting the learning flexibility by ensuring the possibility to leave a match at any point without facing penalties.

The goal is to allow new players to feel comfortable and experiment with trying different heroes while the time is not on their side. Plus, newbies shouldn’t fear that they will encounter Dota veterans or any other than new solo players when queuing. Other than that, the lobby won’t have to be full for the match to begin because bots will take empty places.

The learning curve seems to be highly improved because even when a player feels ready to queue for co-op mode, they will battle against the top-rated community bots. Thanks to that, one can learn how to play with every combat and opponent tailored to their skillset level.

Valve went even further in making the game smoother for newcomers, even in live matches against human enemies. These players will receive constructive suggestions that will help them navigate the usual pitfalls.

Moreover, the game can detect when a new player is about to do something that is not in their best interest during a match. A helpful wizard will pop up with advice to warn the newbie they are putting themselves in danger.

The majority of new players typically perceived the shop as daunting when first playing Dota. Valve recognized this issue and decided to address it by introducing a streamlined version that curbs the perplexity of options and ensures newcomers are not overwhelmed by the information abundance.

Besides, the developers are implementing a new chat channel one can access after finishing their first new player tasks and a flexible coaching system both in-game and from the dashboard.

If you want to check out the update in-depth before trying it out, you can do it here.