Back in the good ol’ days when Warcraft 3 reigned supreme (no pun intended xD) DOTA was the powerhouse of the custom game world. Defense of the Ancients paved the way for a new type of RTS and led to some amazing titles like “League of Legends”. Valve, one of the best gaming companies around in my opinion, has taken hold of this project and ran wild with it. Despite a tussle between Blizz and Valve, the makers of Half Life 2 have proved that they are worthy to hold the title of DOTA 2, after all it was a user made custom game. When I heard of this I was ecstatic, DOTA with Valve mechanics and graphics? Yes please! I got my beta key and was locked and loaded, lets fire her up!
The eery and symbolic music of Valve rang true as a creepy, bald, individual glistens his eyes at you and you just noticed the metal protruding from his skull, right? The DOTA 2 logo is simple yet elegant everything is already eye catching. The interface is clean and pleasing to the eye, as organized as your great grandmothers kitchen table before ‘supper’. Lets take a moment to review the home screen, as if you haven’t played yet, it is very important.
Six tabs line the top of your initial screen. All of them work save for the “Socialize” tab which is a work in progress. Since DOTA is so popular, tournaments are already underway and there is no shortage of footage from professionals and newbs alike. You can view the most recent news and daily blogs. The tab that caught my eyes was the “Customize” tab. That’s right you can go to the steam workshop and customize your champions!! There is also a shop which allows you to buy sets for heroes, Battle Bonuses, and all kinds of gadgets. Now the shop does require money but the steam workshop of course, absolutely free.
The “Learn” tab is great for scrub cakes like me. Click on it and you’ll see a whopping 90 champions! All available right when you install the game, no purchase or special missions necessary, everyone is ready to go from day one. You may recognize some familiar faces like “Razor” or “The Venomancer”. It gives you the champions base stats, lore, and breaks down each of their abilities. You can view videos on the skills as well.
But you’re not reading my blog for the home screen are you? I clicked “Play” and launched a bot game in the North America West Region, I haven’t played DOTA in a long time, I wasn’t about to humiliate myself and get rocked by some fellow geeks. The game starts super fast and this is where the fun begins.
You’ll notice the champions design and look is beautiful. The voice acting is superb and the voice coordinates with the English language perfectly, amazing lip syncing. The champions all look very sexy and Valves graphics definitely don’t disappoint. I picked “Drow Ranger” and got my Boots and some Tangos. After all, what kind of Ranger would I be if I didn’t know how to eat trees?! (Hah, jk everyone knows Drows' don't even know what a tree is.)
The combat is seamless, the sounds match the animations perfectly and everything about the game just looks great. Your minimap is conveniently located at the bottom left and it doesn't get in the way. You and your allies can ping the map and even draw out paths for some extra strategy! After getting my butt handed to me by The Dragonknight I ran into a fellow player named Hadz who had no trouble showing me the ropes and getting my revenge. You still get your Scroll of Town Portal which is great for that quick heal or needed item, but you also get couriers which will allow you to purchase items from the battlefield and have them deliver it to you! The only thing wrong with the courier is it doesn't offer booze delivery service, this mule is clean.
Everything pretty much stays the same. You have to take down the enemy stronghold. You are either part of The Radiant or The Dire each pitted against each other in a blood bath. Three lanes of destruction awaits each champion, including your main obstacle and strategic position, Towers. These things hit even faster now and the flames they spit out *hurt*. After a blitzkrieg to the center of The Dire base we were victorious and a giant KA-BOOM shattered the enemy base, what a glorifying way to end the game.
That's all for now but check back with me as I will be giving my personal feedback on each champion in "Defense of the Ancients 2!"
