Hey everyone I figure I’d cover a topic that many people may be curious about in the Korean Dota 2 scene: foreigners. For those of you who don’t know, foreigners are anyone that is not Korean and currently living in the country. Many foreigners have joined Korean Dota 2 teams recently or made their own teams entirely (aka Zephyr) and have certainly changed the terrain of the Korean scene. Some people complain that the foreigners are making it hard for native Koreans too do well in Dota 2 or that they create one sided stomps on entirely Korean rosters. Others are angry that foreigners come to Korea just to “take all of their money” and then leave. I’d like to go over some of the more positive aspects of foreigners in the Korean scene and discuss why it is a GOOD thing that they are here.



Eye of the Tiger with their four Filipino, one Korean lineup.

First and probably most importantly, they have forced the Koreans to improve very fast and quickly. The difference between the Nexon Sponsorship League season 1 and season 3 is huge. The difference between then and now (close to the end of the Korean Dota 2 League season 1) is huge. Players, teams, and organizations are improving. Over the course of Korean Dota 2 history we have seen more and more foreigners join the scene and they are playing a crucial role in how fast these teams improve; the experience they provide cannot be understated. Over the past few months I feel like I’ve gotten a relatively solid hold on what makes one a good Dota 2 player, and experience is one of the most important things for a player to have in their arsenal. Foreigners coming to Korea helps the natives grab this experience MUCH quicker than they would otherwise.



Koreans have learned this is isn’t Starcraft.

Another point I’d like to discuss is the fact that Korea is one of the most homogeneous countries in the world, with more than 99% of the population having Korean ethnicity. Lets face it, being a foreigner is interesting and will cause some kind of attention. For many people the Dota brand has existed for many years, but for Koreans it is a brand new game and they know nothing of it. In a country where League of Legends is the overwhelmingly dominant e-sport, Dota 2 and Nexon (Valve’s publishing partner in Korea) need to try everything possible to spread awareness of their game and create some sort of Korean following. Having flashy foreigners certainly helps in that regard, but I know its not enough and more will need to be done in order to grow the Korean Dota 2 scene.



Purge appears on the Dota show, Hero X 3

Foreigners and team Zephyr in particular has also created a lot of international exposure for the Korean scene. There are a lot of people that tune into the Korean scene simply for the foreigners, and it will be like this until Korea starts to develop it’s own personalities and top players. This could still be a ways off so it is very necessary for foreigners to be a part of the Korean scene for the foreseeable future.

That about sums up my thoughts on foreigners in Korea, let me know if you enjoyed this article are interested in other aspects of the Korean Dota 2 scene.