The last couple of weeks and days have been interesting when it comes to Dota 2. Professional players and fans are already enjoying ESL One Kuala Lumpur 2023, which began a few days ago. Judging from what we’ve seen so far, there have been a lot of roster changes and other exciting news that some of you may not have heard of, so the goal of this article will be to get you up to date with everything new in the esports scene. Let’s begin.
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Azure Ray Updates Its Roster
The Chinese Dota 2 scene is going through a renaissance, especially in 2023. Some of the best teams could not defeat the big names in Western Europe, but this is no longer true. The International 12 has proven that some teams, including Azure Ray, have enough firepower.
Despite the promising results at TI 12, the organization decided it was time for drastic changes. Surprisingly, it released its star-trio Lu “Somnus” Yao, Yang “Chalice” Shenyi, and Xu “fy” Linsen. We do not have an official reason for these players’ leaving, but some experts think it is because of personal issues.
Aside from these players, Zhang “LaNm” Zhicheng is no longer a part of Azure Ray. The experienced coach decided to step back in favor of Wang “Liekkas” Yutian. The latter is a well-known name in the Chinese Dota 2 scene because he was the coach of Xtreme Gaming. Speaking of the devil, this team has another role in Azure Ray because two new players come from there.
Guo “Xm” Hongcheng and Zhao “XinQ” Zixing are now a part of the squad, and both were at Xtreme Gaming before that. The idea was to help the club qualify for TI12, but since this did not happen, they’ve moved to another club.
The third new player at Azure Ray is Lin “Xxs” Jing. Fans of the Chinese Dota 2 scene know this player because he was a part of Team Aster. In fact, he spent almost 3 years there, but it seemed like it was time for a change.
This is what Azure Ray’s new roster looks like:
- Lou “Lou” Zhen
- Guo “Xm” Hongcheng
- Lin “Xxs” Jing
- Zhao “XinQ” Zixing
- Jiang “tiÄn mìng” An
- Wang “Liekkas” Yutian
LGD’s New Roster
Following the announcement about Azure Ray, China’s best Dota 2 team also announced it would be making changes for the next competitive season. LGD Gaming decided to refresh its roster again, surprising some fans. However, people who’ve been following Wang “Ame” Chunyu know that the Chinese player gave away some of LGD’s next moves.
Now that we know the official information, we can see that Lin “planet” Hao is no longer a part of the team. He will be on the inactive roster, so it is a matter of time before he moves to another club.
Instead of him, LGD decided to get Zhou “Emo” Yi and Xiong “Pyw” Jiahan. These two players were a part of Invictus Gaming, but the latter also received changes, so they are now a part of LGD. Speaking of IG, the latter is now the home of Cheng “NothingToSay” Jin Xiang, so it will be interesting to see the clashes between the clubs.
As for LGD’s roster, here is what it looks like:
- Guo “shiro” Xuanang
- Zhou “Emo” Yi
- Li “niu” Kongbo
- Xiong “Pyw” Jiahan
- Zhang “y” Yiping
Riyadh Masters 2024 – $45M Prize Pool?
Everyone knows that Saudi Arabia is one of the world’s wealthiest countries. The country has become a popular destination for Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2 in the last two years because of Riyadh Masters. This annual event brings together some of the best teams and players.
The Riyadh Masters 2023 was the most impressive Dota 2 tournament with the largest prize pool. The $15M reward was jaw-dropping, but it may be just the beginning because there are rumors that the Riyadh Masters 2024 will have a $45M reward. If this turns out to be accurate, it will make this tournament the most giant prize pool in Dota 2’s history. The current record is held by The International 2020 and is a little over $40M.
This rumor would have been dismissed if it had been a few months ago. However, after Valve announced that there won’t be a DPC, third-party tournament organizers have more freedom. That’s why we wouldn’t be surprised if this competition has a $45M reward.
Dota 2 Tier 2 Scene – PPD’s Thoughts
Dota 2 fans know that Peter “ppd” Dagger is one of the most well-known NA players in the game, and his opinion matters. Unfortunately, in a recent tweet, he said that Dota 2’s Tier 2 scene is terrible, especially after Valve decided to remove the DPC.
According to him, the lack of a structured competitive framework puts those teams at risk because they are uncertain about their future. In fact, he even called the tier 2 scene “extinct”, which is probably true up to a point because only the best Dota 2 teams can survive in the current environment.
His tweet goes even more profound by saying that the game is struggling to attract new players. The player urges reforms, but we have yet to see if Valve will take action and whether something will change.
