Praising Dota 2 Developers: Reasons to Appreciate Valve’s Creative Approach

While patch 7.38 or 7.40 is still not here, instead of criticizing Valve, let’s focus on the positives. For six months, Dota 2 featured an event that surpassed similar efforts in other popular online games in scale and variety. Today, we’ll praise Valve, as every criticism of Dota’s developers has a flip side worth appreciating.

Valve has voluntarily abandoned the lucrative Battle Pass system, which was hugely popular and profitable. Instead, they introduced the Crownfall format, allowing players to earn substantial rewards without spending money. This stands in contrast to other competitive games that are inundated with battle passes focused primarily on skins.

The Crownfall event offered a grand narrative, experimental lore presentation, and numerous engaging activities. Even after the event’s conclusion, Valve continued to support and develop the “Thorned Throne” mini-event, simply because players enjoyed it.

While Valve may struggle with consistent patch schedules, they can create charming and amusing content, such as the Crownfall archive presented from Skree’auk’s perspective. This approach demonstrates that Valve prioritizes creation and player enjoyment over monetization.

Valve’s approach to Dota 2 development is reminiscent of a creative “free spirit” student. They may miss deadlines but genuinely want to delight their audience with original work. This sometimes results in unexpected surprises, like patch notes encrypted as emojis or teasers in the form of cave paintings within the Crownfall act.

The developers occasionally find great ideas, implement them, and then move on, refusing to engage in repetitive production of successful formats. While this approach has its drawbacks, it also shows Valve’s commitment to innovation and player engagement.

In conclusion, Valve’s love for Dota 2 is not that of a business project requiring constant optimization, but rather as a game they want to enjoy during the development process. While this approach may have its shortcomings, it’s worth appreciating Valve’s efforts to surprise and create something special for the Dota 2 community.