Recently, professional Dota 2 shattered the record for its longest game. The match lasted more than 200 minutes. That's over an hour longer than the previous high water mark. The enormous contest length led to a number of other broken records, including the most kills and deaths on a single team.

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“ Mario Kart and Dota's methods of rubber-banding are meant to keep things interesting

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Professional Dota 2 matches typically lasts between 30 and 45 minutes, but there was a reason for the 3+ hour battle, one that may no longer be as threatening thanks to a recent patch. Dota 2 has its very own equivalent of Mario Kart’s devious Blue Shell -- and it's changing dramatically with every update.The "comeback gold" mechanic was introduced last year in Dota 2’s huge " Rekindling Soul ” update. Just like Nintendo's diabolical drop, it puts the winning team on a dangerous balance. The more gold, items, and kills a team accrues, the more gold their opponents earn for killing them. Because there is no second place in Dota 2, that puts the winning team in constant danger of coming in dead last.In Dota, there are multiple ways to build your team’s lead besides killing your opponents. One team's total kills over another isn't always the best indicator of progress. More items typically means higher damage, more health, and better utility, making it decent shorthand for whoever the real winning team is at any given time.In Rekindling Soul, developer Valve concocted a formula using a team’s total net worth to determine the value of a kill in Dota 2. Those bounties, in turn, feed the once-losing team new items to better match their adversaries. To continue the analogy, minutes of carefully negotiated turns and withheld power-ups become borderline meaningless, as suddenly simply being in the "front" becomes a detriment.Of course, it's not quite that simple. In Mario Kart, the strategy of the Blue Shell is all about waiting for the last possible moment to take the pack leader's place. In Dota, you'll want to take advantage of the formula's generosity as quickly as possible. If the opposing players simply outclass you, odds are they can build a comfortable lead that will take more than one or two lost fights to close.In professional Dota, there's also the draft (in which heroes are picked and banned in turns prior to the start of a match) to help guide strategy. Different heroes are stronger at different stages of a match, so even if one team surpasses another early on, the squad with the better long-term team can use that blue shell to permanently pass their opponent.In the case of the record-breaking three-hour-and-twenty-minute game, there was no clear leverage for either side. Cloud9 built a convincing early lead, but fell to SFZ's defenses one too many times. The result left the latter team too beaten to do anything but defend their home territory, but fat enough on the blood of their enemies to hold out until both sides needed to pause for a potty break.In most cases, comeback gold remains a net positive. In high-level play, it guarantees that neither side will be complacent, instead going to great lengths to secure their lead and keep it there.While it's true that both Mario Kart and Dota's methods of rubber-banding are meant to keep things interesting, the Blue Shell is both random and precise. There's no guarantee that anyone will pick it up from the irregular power-up cubes on Nintendo's twisting tracks. Though, if they do, the shot will hone in on the front target with unfailing accuracy.The opposite is true of Dota 2. Outplaying a team that's gained the upper hand is a deliberate (and thrilling) action on the part of those involved. Meanwhile, there's no promise that such a play will succeed, since there are five very real people working to make sure that doesn't happen. That's just the sort of back and forth that makes Dota 2 such a wonderful spectator sport.Besides that, we're not likely to see another 200-minute professional game – at least not for the same reasons. Comeback gold isn't what it used to be, courtesy of Dota 2's most recent major patch. It's still present, but the formula has been dialed back significantly to turn what was once oppressive into a gentle nudge towards tension. The patch comes just in time, too. This is the version of the game that will be played at The International this year, which has already crowdfunded itself a more than $7 million prize pool with three months to go.In its current incarnation, Dota 2's “Blue Shell” accomplishes the goal - adding a bit of tension and chaos to the competition. This latest patch shows that Valve stands by comeback gold as a valuable part of Dota, though it is more than willing ensure the first-place team never feels the need to voluntarily slam on the brakes.

Steven Strom is a freelance writer. You can find his work on IGN, Ars Technica, Red Bull eSports, and more. Follow him on Twitter