Why Dota 2's The International Matters for Filipino Esports Players

(SPOT.ph) The International (TI) is Dota 2’s largest and most sacred tournament. Each year, the training camps, year-long tournaments, and roster shuffling are centered upon the goal of qualifying, and deemed worthy to compete in TI. Dota 2 pros work towards the ultimate goal of participating, and perhaps even winning the biggest prize the game has to offer. 

Dota 2 The International isn't just a tournament

Filipinos have always had a noticeable presence in the Dota community since its previous iteration as a custom map in Warcraft III. College students in the mid-2000’s would call home a computer shop with dim lights lined with tens, even hundreds, of PCs—most of which are already booted up and ready for Dota. At times, there would be huddles behind rows of players who are engaged in money games with loud screams hyping up the whole shop. 

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This love for Dota and its accessibility to the masses brought Filipino skill centerstage in the South East Asian region. Filipinos have been well represented in TI and have logged some amazing upsets and hype moments such as Mineski’s upset of Chinese team Ok.Nirvana at TI1 and TNC’s elimination of tournament favorites OG at TI6 which spawned the Dota Battle cry of “Lakad Matatag!"

Expanding reach

The improvement of internet speeds as well as companies starting to buy in to the concept of esports has made Dota more accessible than ever. Major tournaments are as easy to watch, if not easier, than traditional sports media such as basketball. What makes the viewing experience more unique for Dota is that while you are unlikely to play pickup ball with professional basketball players, there is always a possibility for you to be able to play with your favorite Dota players, whether bumping into them on ranked or through other means such as stream promotion events. This creates the feeling of personal connection between the average player and a professional one.

Whenever we watch our favorite players, we have what we call vicarious experiences, put simply, we empathize and relate to the experiences of others as if they were our own if we are closely observing them. One common example of this is “Pinoy pride”, wherein a Filipino makes a name for themselves abroad, their every move is now followed and their fellow countrymen are now invested in their story.

These vicarious experiences can be stronger for aspiring esports professionals since the better a player is, the higher the chance they can play with, or against, their idolized players. Vicarious experiences are also able to increase self-efficacy which is one’s personal belief in their own capability to accomplish a certain task. This lends itself to the mindset of the aspiring pro, “If I am able to beat my idol, or if I can consistently play against them, it means I too have a chance of becoming pro!”

Filipinos in battle

TI11 which will be held in Singapore from October 15 to October 30 and features at least 8 Filipino players out of 90 in total, the fourth most in country representation. This number may go up to as high as 14 depending on the results of the last chance qualifiers taking place on October 8 to 12. It is also of note that for eleven iterations of the tournament, there has never been a SEA-based team to win the tournament. 

Filipino Dota players and casual viewers alike will be glued to this major event hoping to be the first to take home the tournament’s grand prize, the Aegis of champions. No Filipino team has placed higher than 7th-8th and so they continue to cheer their hearts out. The more representation our country has in the tournament or the higher Filipino teams place will surely inspire the next generation of esports pros to chase the dream. 

Prepare for battle!

About the author: James Dominic Flores is a lecturer at Far Eastern University Manila, specializing in psychology. He is also a competitive gamer specializing in fighting games.