Valve have announced the second sequel to Dota 2’s official championships, due to run across five days in August at the Benaroya Hall in downtown Seattle. Qualifier events will begin some two-and-a-half months before that, on May 13.
Only one team have been invited to this year’s International so far – returning Chinese heroes Invictus Gaming. 12 more teams will be announced in the coming days.
Add to that 12 the winners of both the East and West qualifiers, and you’ve got 14 teams – plus another to be determined during a runner’s-up Wild Card event held the night before The International begins in Seattle.
The West Qualifier will fall between May 13 and 19, and be hosted by GDStudio. The East Qualifier will run from May 20 to 26, with a little help from BeyondTheSummit. Both will be free to watch via DotaTV.
You’ll want to keep an eye on the official website for more announcements as they happen.
Valve’s continuing support of Dota’s burgeoning bevy of pros is still a lovely thing to see. Invictus Gaming walked away with a not inconsiderable $1 million after last year’s International. Their closest rivals, Natus Vincere and LGD Gaming, won $250,000 and $150,000 respectively.
Fill us in, Dota heads: who’s this year’s favourite?
Thanks, JoinDota.