14 DAY TRIAL // What we know:
Blizzard is finally set to enter the MOBA (Multiplayer Battle Arena) genre with its own game called, what else, Blizzard Dota.
Seeing as how the whole genre originated as a fan-made mod for the studio’s own Warcraft III strategy game, Blizzard wants to make sure that its own effort will deliver the most impressive experience of its kind.
As we saw last year, after the game’s BlizzCon reveal, Blizzard Dota focuses more on simplicity, making the game accessible to a wider audience, while still leaving plenty of things that will delight those that have already mastered the original Dota and its many clones, like League of Legends or Heroes of Newerth.
What’s more, the studio is flexing its creative muscles with the game, as Blizzard Dota’s fighters include some of the most famous and infamous characters from franchises like Warcraft, which brings Arthas, to Diablo, represented by the Witch Doctor, or StarCraft, which brings heroes like Zeratul and villains like the Queen of Blades.
All these characters will be split into four categories, Tank, Support, DPS (Damage per Second) and Siege. No matter the class, players will be rewarded for their team’s achievements, in order to keep everyone working together.
Character stats are split into Damage, Health, and Mastery, while plenty of items, including Consumables, Stat Boosts or Artifacts, will make gameplay more complex and, hopefully, more rewarding for those who already are veterans of such games.
Why it matters: The MOBA genre has really taken off since the dawn of Dota, which is still played even today by plenty of people. While we’ve been flooded with similar titles ever since, Blizzard Dota might take the genre into the right direction by simplifying plenty of things in order to attract new players.
This may not please longtime players, but it seems that the studio is trying to strike a perfect balance between accessibility and complexity. Knowing Blizzard’s constant strive for perfection, the developer won’t stop until everyone’s happy with the final game, even if this might lead to a few delays.