Valve Cancels Dota 2 Battle Passes

Valve canceled the Dota 2 Battle Pass in a landmark move as the organization chose to focus on inclusive content for all players

Valve has made a significant decision that is bound to send shockwaves through the Dota 2 community. In a groundbreaking announcement, the organization revealed that it will no longer be releasing Dota 2 Battle Passes. The discontinuation of the Battle Passes marks a significant departure from the established cycle and raises questions about the future of Dota 2 and the kind of content players can expect going forward.
With Dota 2's tenth anniversary on the horizon, the game’s creators are taking a reflective approach. In a post titled “Learning from the Past, Looking to the Future,” they indicated that they are reevaluating different aspects of the game, with the Battle Pass taking center stage as a primary candidate for removal.

Dota 2 Battle Pass 2023 Release Canceled 

Last year, Valve introduced a groundbreaking shift during TI11 by dividing the annual battle pass into two distinct sections. The first part was rolled out in preparation for the major Dota event, while the second part was released immediately following the event and was extended until the new year. This initial change was indicative of further changes on the horizon, as Valve has now chosen to entirely discontinue the battle pass.

Valve is eagerly gearing up to celebrate the upcoming 10th anniversary of Dota 2 with all Dota 2 players around the world on July 9. While the celebratory update won't be launched precisely on the anniversary itself, the developers have taken a moment to reflect on the past, present, and future of content releases for the game.

Since its inception in 2013 as The International Interactive Compendium, which later evolved into the TI Battle Pass, Valve has employed these content releases as a means to commemorate Dota in all its glory and engage players worldwide, even in the absence of attending the event. Despite the original intention behind this concept, the battle pass gradually absorbed content that had previously been featured in other updates.

According to Valve's explanation, it decided to allocate additional resources that are typically dedicated to the battle pass towards creating fresh content this year. As a result, the organization introduced the controversial and extensive 7.33 New Frontiers update, which brought about significant changes to the game, along with a new hero, Muerta, and a revamped minigame. The post highlighted that incorporating such content would not have been possible if it had concentrated its efforts solely on the battle pass.

Here’s what Valve had to say about its decision to move away from battle passes: 

“Last year, we started to ask ourselves whether Dota was well-served by having this single focal point around which all content delivery was designed. Each step we had taken made sense when considered independently: any single piece of content would be more valuable when bundled as part of the battle pass, so we bundled more and more. This led to a momentous content drop every year, but it also greatly limited our ability to do things that were exciting and valuable for players but didn’t fit into the battle pass reward line.”

When Will The Dota 2 10-Year Anniversary Update Come Out?

Valve has announced that Dota 2 will receive a commemorative update in honor of its tenth anniversary. The update, however, will not be ready in time for a July 9 release. It is expected that Dota 2's birthday update will be released later this summer, potentially in late July or early August.

How Will Valve Replace The Battle Pass?

The end of battle passes doesn’t bring about the end of crowdfunding for The International's prize pool. In place of the battle pass, Valve will introduce an update centered around the TI theme in September. The primary emphasis of this update will be on the event, players, and games, with cosmetic items playing a less prominent role. This indicates that the update will likely introduce elements related to fantasy play and other supporting items, similar to the stickers launched last year.

Valve is actively working on cosmetic items such as Personas and Arcanas, indicating their continued commitment to enhancing the game's visual elements. It says, “By freeing up Dota’s update and content cycle from the timing and structural constraints of the battle pass, we can go back to making content in the way we know best: by coming up with fun ideas of all scales and shapes and exploring them with you.”