Valve has just announced “The International”, a Dota 2 tournament that will bring gamers the world over their first ever look at Dota 2. It will take place at Gamescom, from the 17th of August to the 21st of August, in Cologne, Germany.
The International features the 16 best Dota teams in the world competing in the Dota 2 Championships through a group stage, double elimination playoff format over the course of Cologne’s five-day trade show.
The tournament will be broadcast in four languages (Chinese, German, Russian, and English) free of charge.
Free of charge? Ah, yes, Valve truly is Valve. Imagine if we were dealing with another, more insidious game corporation here. Would they be so willing to let potential money fly away?
The winning team will receive $1 million.
Oh my.
“The International is the first public Dota 2 event and will give the tens of millions of gamers playing Dota around the world their first look at the new game,” said Gabe Newell, president and founder of Valve. “I have had the good fortune to watch the competitors as they prepare for the tournament, and the level of play is extraordinary.”
Sounds great. In addition, to the cash prize, which comes straight from Valve’s pockets, hardware for the event will be provided by NVidia. The 16 teams in question are:
- GGnet, from Europe.
- MYM, from Denmark.
- Na’vi, from Ukraine.
- CCM, from China.
- LGD, from China.
- TyLoo, from China.
- OK.Nirvana.int, from China.
- M5, from Russia.
- MiTH-Trust, from Thailand.
- EHOME, from China.
- StarsBoBa, from Vietnam.
- OK.Nirvana.cn, from China.
- nevo, from Denmark.
- Scythe.SG, from Singapore.
- MUFC, from Malaysia.
- Mineski.Infinity, from the Philippines.
These guys are the elite – the best of the best when it comes to Dota, so show some respect! Watching these heavyweights duke it out should prove to be a treat for gamers all around the globe. The Dota 2 website now redirects to a splash page featuring information on the championship, and they’ve also got a post on the Dota 2 blog with info on the event. You can also check out the official press release on Steam’s news page. Also of interest is the fact that both the blog post and the press release yet again mention that it will be out “later this year”. If all goes well, this may be one of the few Valve games that haven’t slipped a single release date.
We’ll keep you posted, as we’re sure we’ll be seeing more Dota 2 info coming out before the tournament begins.
One Ticket to German, Please.
EPIC!!!! 😀
Well, now would be a great time for Valve to start working on that damn Half-Life sequel, right?
If only Valve were as generous and passioned about competitive play with their earlier games… *looks askew at left4dead*
Great work! This is the fastest I’ve seen you work yet!
I haven’t been the biggest fan of RTS games, but this is really exciting!
DOTA 2 might be my first contact with a RTS game.
Since its made by Valve, I expect perfection from it.
I’m pretty sure this isn’t the first announcement we’ve covered in “record time”, so to speak, but thanks for the kind words, theevilpplz! And yes, Dota 2 sounds very exciting!