I will try to be unbiased in this review as much as I can possibly imagine (despite the 10 in my score. I wish there was a 9.5). I've dedicated over 1400 hours to this game, and probably more in it's original incarnation of DotA back on the Warcraft 3 engine. NOTE: I will list all the technical aspects first, then go through the bad and mixed after that, and the reasons I absolutely rate I will try to be unbiased in this review as much as I can possibly imagine (despite the 10 in my score. I wish there was a 9.5). I've dedicated over 1400 hours to this game, and probably more in it's original incarnation of DotA back on the Warcraft 3 engine. NOTE: I will list all the technical aspects first, then go through the bad and mixed after that, and the reasons I absolutely rate this game a 10 will be listed after.



First off, the game itself is solid. It is mechanically and competitively balanced. There may be certain heroes that are currently favored in both high level public matches and in professional matches, but statistics show that win rates are pretty balanced at the 50% mark.



Secondly, the aesthetics and graphics are pretty well done. It is clearly a step above the original DotA. However, design style in comparison to other DotA clones are strictly to a user's preference. I know people who love LoL's design over Dota2's and vice versa. The caveat is that these things SHOULD NOT matter. It might get some getting use to, but overall, it will not detract from the experience.



Thirdly, the (may be) bad. This is true for every ARTS (or MOBA) game out there. There WILL be rude players out there. This is a game where every game counts. Since each match lasts for about 30 minutes to an hour each, a lot of people will only be able to play 1 to 2 games at a time. As such, they are emotionally invested to get the best experience of playing the game every time. Being so will encourage players to be extremely passionate about each match, so when there exists a player who is clearly not up to snuff, a visceral raging will most likely ensue. This leads me up to the next point:



Fourthly, the mix: This is not a game you can play just play casually forever. This game has a learning curve for EVERY aspect of the game, i.e. heroes, item builds, map control, laning, jungle control, warding, etc. You will SUCK at the beginning. It is inevitable. Everyone who starts this game has to go through it. This is the source of what many people call "Egoism" among veteran players. All of us veterans had to go through periods of mediocrity to be where we are now. We invested hours and hours into not just playing the game, but reading about it outside the game. This means we did homework on reading hero guides, watching replays, looking for tips on ward positions, etc. We went through sort of a "rite of initiation" to attain the personal skill level we are at now. In order for ANYONE to play this game WELL, they'd have to go through the same process over time. However, you will not go through this process alone which is illustrated in the next point.



Fifthly, the good: The community as a whole is one of the BEST i've ever been a part of. This may seem weird after I listed the third point. However, aside from the vicious minority, I've largely felt that this is the multiplayer game with the least amount of "a**holes". I've also found that the people who regularly complained about the "horrible" community are also the ones who regularly berates others in game. A bad attitude always begets bad attitude from others. However, this is one community that also LOVES to help new players succeed. People regularly posts guides and videos to help new players out. You just have to search for them. There are alot of resources to be gain from youtube as well. And friends i have that had just started out regularly tells me about their experiences where their teammates and even their opponents would give them tips to perform better each time. It is always best to upfront about your level of expertise, especially if you're new. This will set your teammates expectations at the appropriate level from the beginning and they'd be able to help you out when you need it. I've even seen people offer to train new players.



Sixth, The game itself has one of the most deepest design I have ever experienced in a game. You know that feeling that after 100 games of COD multiplayer, you'd feel like there's nothing new anymore? I've played this game (Dota2 and DotA) for 8 years and I'm still learning something new and subtle everyday. What sets this game apart from the other ARTS games is the things you DONT see on the surface. Everything is manipulatable, which translates to the evolution of a large variety of strategies that continues to expand after so many years. Things like creep pulling, stacking, lane control, etc are little nuances that may seem irrelevant to the untrained eye, but as you evolve as a player, you'd realize these little things help so much in the metagame. In extreme cases in high level play, a game can be said to be one from the moment you pick your heroes. This high level of strategic thinking is something other multiplayer games cannot achieve and is something is refined and evolved from community enacted plays over these years.



I'm running out of space to write more about this game. Just know this, this game is WORTH IT. … Expand