DotA 2's The International 8 Battle Pass Is Now Available for Purchase
By Ford James ·
The prize pool is nearly at $5 million and it keeps growing ahead of the world renowned tournament in August, and you can pick up the battle pass now. It also comes with a Battle Royale mode?!
DotA 2’s The International is one of, if not the most renowned esports event in the world. It happens every year and we’re on to the eighth iteration taking place this August. You can now get in on the action and support the event by picking up the battle pass, which was released in a patch by Valve last night.
There’s no major changes to how the battle pass works; you can buy the first level and gain access to the pass for $9.99, or you can shell out more cash for a much bigger start at level 75 for $36.99. As usual, it contains the expected goodies; cosmetics, exclusive features, Immortal-quality hero equipment, and more. Interestingly, it contains an exclusive battle royale mode, but we’ll get onto that shortly.
Some of the exclusive features available with this year’s battle pass include - in a DotA first - role-based matchmaking, which allows players to select their preferred role (Safe, Mid, Offlane, Support) and get put with other players who have selected the other roles to populate a full team with appropriate roles. Another feature is in-game tipping, for those times you’re in awe of a teammate managing to clutch up when the odds are stacked against them, you can now offer Battle Points as a gift. They don’t even come from your stash so there’s no need to be frugal, but you are limited to three tips in one game, and 10 tips per week.
Other added features include the ability to predict results for the Pro Circuit and earn Battle Points for correct predictions, sprays that you can equip and graffiti onto the map to mark your territory, and a Mutation mode which is unranked, but has a random selection of gameplay modifiers such as the ability to revive your teammates. These modifiers change each day, so the mode is constantly evolving.
The Underhollow is the big addition however. Featuring Roshan, the most powerful neutral creep in the game, players are put into teams of three and must navigate a labyrinth and fight other teams in an effort to be the last team standing as Roshan causes the caverns to crumble around you, forcing the playing area to gradually shrink. The end goal is to find Roshan’s beloved cheese, Roshefort, and earn yourselves a hefty amount of Battle Points.
You can read up all of the details and purchase it on the official Battle Pass page, or head in-game to buy it via your DotA 2 client. In other MOBA news, the MSI Play-In Stage has been taking place on League of Legends and we’ve got numerous exciting games for you to watch.