In this series, we’ll be looking at some of the biggest esports in the world. The games that changed the concept of sports forever. The games that cemented esports in the annals of history. We’ll be looking back at the games from their inception to today. We’ll start with arguably the biggest esport in the Western world: DotA – Defense of the Ancients.

The birth of a concept

Like many other great innovations, DotA was a brand new concept. It was the beginning of a genre that today includes hundreds of games: multiplayer online battle arenas, or MOBs as they are commonly called. Although there were several games of a similar style before, most people consider DotA to be the first serious game. The genre quickly became one of the most popular in the gaming community, with millions of players from all over the world. Month after month, week after week, day after day, people still play it. Starting on computers, the genre has expanded to consoles, tablets and mobile phones. For those who don’t know how

mobas works, here’s a quick overview. Basically, you play the game from a helicopter perspective on a map or battle arena, with two teams battling each other. The ultimate goal is to destroy the opponent’s “base”, a structure deep within each team’s territory. But as you’ll see, it’s not that simple. Typically, there are five players on each team, each with a specific role: tank, support, roamer, ranged damage dealer, to name a few. To be successful, each role must work in harmony with the others. The arena usually consists of three “lanes” radiating from each team’s base and converging in the middle, where combat usually takes place. Between the lanes are “unexplored” areas, where players can switch lanes, kill Bos5000 creeps, collect various buffs, cooperate or hide during an ambush.

Most people associate DotA with the strategy game Warcraft 3, and while that’s not wrong, DotA’s predecessor, Aeon of Strife, was actually developed as a mod for the original Starcraft: Brood War. Aesthetics aside, the format was different – 2v2 instead of 5v5, the game ended when all players died (rather than respawning), there were four lanes instead of three, and it was overall a less “full” game. When Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos was released in 2002, the mod greatly benefited from a more robust map editor. Aeon of Strife was updated (several times, to be exact) to add experience gain, leveling up, a more comprehensive skillset, and additional gear. One update or map in particular garnered a strong community. And guess what card that was? Yes, that’s right. The Defense of the Ancients map was created by modder Eul. And so DotA was born.

Transition into its own game

The complexity of Warcraft 3’s map editor made it possible for mods to be played and enjoyed on their own. When The Frozen Throne, an expansion pack for Warcraft 3: Reign of Chaos, came out the following year in 2003, DotA and several tower defense mods were among the most popular maps with custom realms. A growing fanbase allowed for distribution, and modders began to make the game even more complex. Eul, the original inventor, disappeared from the mapmaking scene after The Frozen Throne, but fortunately left his code open source. Now modders can build on what Eul laid the foundations for.

After the release of The Frozen Throne, the new version of DotA was called DotA Allstars. The name comes from the fact that it was a version with a lineup of popular heroes (playable characters in the game). Improved heroes with improved mechanics were created to fit Allstars. Maps were refined over time and became better balanced and more gameplay mechanics were added as they became more popular. This was also the time when Roshan (the most powerful creep in the game, strengthening the team that kills him) was created. Its creator, modder Guinsoo (Steve Feak), apparently named it after a bowling ball.

With the rise of DotA Allstars and the passage of time, many players grew tired of the regular Warcraft 3 gameplay and turned their attention to another aspect of the game: custom maps. Organized competitions emerged and became more and more frequent. As more players joined the ranks, more effort was put into the already complex game, and innovative modders such as the aforementioned Guinsoo, IceFrog, Neichus, Pendragon, and True.Rus took the game to the next level. These influential “developers” made DotA balanced and polished enough to function as a competitive game in its own right.

At this time, the first semi-official forum for DotA was created, called 9nid, where players could chat about experiences, opportunities for improvement, and other DotA-related topics. At some point, and very soon, as more and more players joined the forum, 9nid’s servers could not cope with the pressure of the incoming traffic. They had to move to larger servers. A new forum was founded on RTSGamer and quickly thrived. The official DotA Allstars website was created, promoting the first “leagues”, Clan TDA (Team DotA Allstars) and IGN (International Gaming Syndicate). The newly founded community now had an official online presence. The new website grew explosively in the months following late 2004, with 100 volunteers and roughly 1 million page views per day. The train started moving.

In 2005, DotA Allstars was translated into Chinese, which had a very positive impact on the community. New markets were opened up. However, the EU and NA markets were leaders in terms of innovation, game improvement, and competition. Speaking of competitions, the first official international DotA event was held at the World Cyber ​​Games in Singapore in 2005. Teams also started to emerge around this time. Competition had reached such a high level that you had to assemble a team to participate in tournaments and events. Legendary teams like Apex, Boomtown, Team Q, and PluG made an impact in these previous competitions. No doubt many more would follow.

At this point, DotA was much more than just a regular custom map. Hundreds of thousands of fans, competitions, competitive teams, and international fame – but that was just the beginning…