While players were happy to get free cosmetics as part of the event, many felt it was a lackluster celebration for over a decade of Dota 2.
Dota 2 developer Valve Software released the game’s long-awaited 10-year anniversary event on Friday (18 August) over 40 days after the actual anniversary date last 9 July.
From 18 August to 7 September, the anniversary event will give players the chance to win 13 commemorative cosmetic items themed after every year of Dota 2’s existence; three for its years in beta and 10 others celebrating the years since the game’s official release on 9 July 2013.
However, many players were not too thrilled with the anniversary event, especially after the long delay, and voiced their concerns on the official Dota 2 subreddit.
While players were happy to get free cosmetics for simply winning games, many felt it was a lackluster celebration for over a decade of Dota 2’s existence.
User BudgetDiligent said that 13 cosmetics for the 10-year anniversary event felt underwhelming, especially after Valve said back in June that they were moving away from the yearly Battle Pass.
“Ok, first off; the chest is great. Flavour text is good, items are good, and we get free persona. Although I wish the last 2 weren’t seasonal I guess,” posted BudgetDiligent.
“However; this is THE 10-year update after they said they would focus on non-[Battle Pass] content for everyone. A single chest seems underwhelming, no?
User Saesix also said that the event “is legit, but I don’t think it does justice to a 10-year anniversary celebration.”
Others also bristled at the fact that the event was delayed over 40 days from the actual anniversary date and only ended up being a free cosmetics event instead of a more substantial content update.
User Flam3ss commented “I thought it would be a custom game PvE stuff due to delays, if it was always win match, get treasure then why the delay?”
User Ken99174 added “I will never understand how 1 treasure containing 13 hats caused the anniversary update to be delayed by 40 days from its original date.”
Aside from its 10-year anniversary event, Dota 2 is also gearing up for the 12th installment of its annual multimillion-dollar world championship event: The International 2023.
TI 2023 will be hosted across multiple weekends from 12 to 29 October in Seattle, the United States. This year’s tournament also features a revamped format split into two distinct phases, called ‘The Road to The International’ and ‘The International’ itself.
TI 2023’s regional qualifiers are also ongoing and will run until 31 August. The TI 2023 regional qualifiers will be held from 17 to 31 August, with the competition being split into three five-day phases where two regions will compete in each phase.
The qualifiers for North America and China will kick things off from 17 to 21 August, South America and Eastern Europe will follow from 22 to 26 August, while Western Europe and Southeast Asia will close things out from 27 to 31 August.
Valve is also set to release a TI 2023-themed update in September.
