During The International 2023 for Dota 2, professional players had the opportunity to tour Valve’s offices and meet the developers involved in the game’s development. However, Team Spirit’s star carry player, Yatoro, shared his less-than-positive experience during a recent appearance on Oleksii “STORM” Tumanov’s Twitch stream.
Yatoro noted that during his visit, he observed a greater number of developers working on CS2 compared to the Dota 2 team, which he could count on one hand. His interaction with the designers left him with the impression that they were “unfriendly,” as no one approached the professional players, suggesting a lack of interest in Dota 2’s competitive scene.
When Yatoro sought answers about future content releases, he faced unanswered questions, prompting him to question IceFrog’s involvement in Dota 2’s development. The status of the legendary developer’s association with Valve has been a topic of debate within the community, with pros like N0tail expressing doubts in a 2022 interview with Dot Esports.
As Dota 2 entered the summer of 2023, it received a substantial patch, causing some fans to celebrate what seemed like IceFrog’s return. However, the true nature of IceFrog’s relationship with Valve remains elusive. Yatoro’s sentiments align with concerns that Dota 2 patches have become somewhat stale in the last three years, and fans brace themselves for disappointment when anticipating major releases, which often face delays.
Yatoro’s views resonated with the community, evident in the TI 2023 prize pool, which experienced a decline due to the underwhelming Compendium 2023 update. Expectations for the “Dota Christmas” were shattered, as Valve’s TI12 battle pass replacement, the TI 2023 Compendium, lacked substantial content, resulting in the lowest prize pool in TI history since the early 2010s.