Over the last year, all Dota teams have improved exponentially and are more equal than ever. Most fans and analysts know that even the so-called “underdog” teams have the potential to eliminate or take the game off the more notable favorites.

Read on to catch up on what is new and what has happened so far at The International 2016.

The teams and the bracket

Looking at the teams that are attending this year, there is definitely a lot of diversity. Many of the teams such as OG, Digital Chaos, Team Secret and more have many players of different nationalities. While this might not affect actual gameplay, the diversity of the scene should be noted. This includes people from Estonia, Macedonia, Syria and even Israel.

The International is split into the wild cards, group stages and the actual main event held in the Key Arena stadium in Seattle. The wild cards are teams that made it through an open qualifier and a regional qualifier to find their spot, the top two teams fight it out in Seattle, US, to find out who joins the tournament along with the invited and second-round qualifier teams. This year it was Escape Gaming and Ehome, the old Chinese giant.

In the end, those were the groups, with Escape going into Group A and Ehome going into Group B. The results of these groups were quite unexpected for most Dota fans as Ehome, a qualifier team, took the first spot of the round robin groups with a 12-2 win-loss record. Meanwhile in Group A, the long-time favorite OG took first place with an 11-3 record.

(Read also: Meet the pro-gamers who struggle to reach the top and succeed)

Most of the Dota fans found the group stage surprising given the many teams that wound up in the lower bracket despite being favorites coming in. These teams included NaVi, Team Liquid, LGD gaming and Team Secret. Most fans expected NaVi to make it into the winner bracket given its success in the StarLadder i-League Tournament just a few weeks before The International. Team Liquid, Team Secret and LGD were all considered favorites in the tournament and yet were also sent to the lower bracket.

The risk of getting sent to the lower bracket is that the first rounds are all best-of-one games, meaning one game could mean a potential loss and a large loss in prize money; a jump from a loss in the first four rounds and a loss in the next rounds is huge, a difference of about $180,000. Not to mention that the next rounds are all best-of-three, which is a much safer bet than a best-of-one.

New features at the main event

So far, there have been tons of new features in the main event. The first of which is the Augmented Reality heroes that are being used to display the heroes being picked on center stage.

As seen from the photo, all the heroes are represented by an augmented reality display on the floor, allowing viewers an idea of what the analysts are talking about. Valve has also set up a “Hall of Heroes”, which is a stage where players can pose with their favorite heroes. Not to mention that the heroes shown are linked to their steam account so they can pose with their favorite heroes in the way the player customizes them.

Although there is no newbie stream this year, the game breakdowns are easier to digest thanks to what many fans like to call the “Purge Corner”, where popular Dota 2 personality Kevin “Purge” Godec explains many of the important moments each game and breaks down the statistics so it is easier for viewers to understand.

In addition, the viewers are also helped out by explanations of a hero’s abilities and statistics whenever they are picked, so viewers who are newer to the game can understand more easily what is going on. (ken/kes)

Popular

Stocks in Asia rise, yen wobbles after volatile start to week

In Numbers: How women fare in Indonesia

Indonesia may offer dual citizenship to attract overseas workers, minister says