Dota 2 draws back on fight pass design to maximize dev resources

Dota 2 is graduating from its tier of combat. As part of a retrospective on the game’s first decade, developer Valve said it will shift focus away from the game’s money-making mechanic and instead provide more frequent updates for its players.

Born out of the season pass model of the early to mid-2010s, fight passes have become standard fare for live service games for the better part of a year. Video games that already have a battle pass are not likely to suddenly reduce its size, as they provide more revenue for developers.

Dota 2 Battle Pass

There is a change because many Dota 2 players “never purchase a Battle Pass and never get any benefits from it.” It’s an astonishingly forthright statement that brings up the point that the layout isn’t ideal for each and every game.

It didn’t help that the Pass usually included extra features that should have been free, like voice lines, new game modes, etc.

Valve has stated that the Battle Pass “has actually grown to be a significantly amazing time in Dota 2,” but that the rest of the year feels empty in comparison. To maximise the value of the Battle Pass, we’ve been bundling more and more content together.

In preparation for this year’s The International tournament, the development team decided to divert resources from the Battle Pass into “speculative updates.” Valve has claimed that it is going out of its way to avoid calling this another Battle Pass, and that the updates include features and content that aren’t typically included in the Pass.

With the Battle Pass no longer dictating Dota’s upgrade and content cycle, Valve stated, “we can return to making material in the way we understand best: by creating enjoyable concepts of all scales and shapes, and exploring them with you.”

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