Sunday, August 11, 2013

Kate's First DOTA Experience: A Lesson In Watching Competitive Gaming

So, my weekend away from the Kootenays led me to my second home, Calgary. My boyfriend was surprisingly cool to make the eight-hour trek; he drives an automatic so he was forced to drive the entire time because I have NO idea how to drive stick. Why was he so cool with it? It is the DOTA finals weekend. 

So, right now I am making a valiant effort to understand the computer game that has taken up so much of his free time over the last couple of years. Around me are a posse of boys (I guess I should say 20-something men), who assembled in record time to watch the DOTA live stream on our large TV all afternoon.

Full disclosure, here is what I know about DOTA pre-game:

I’ll check in to throughout the afternoon to give you some insight into my DOTA finals experience.

Break 1:
Well, really happy that the team the guy’s here are cheering for ‘Navi’ won and will be in the finals. One thing I have learned is that watching professional computer gaming live is just like watching professional sports in the sense that you eat tones of food. So far we’ve gone through a 12 pack of Wild Rose beer, a fruit tray, 2 bags of tortilla chips, 20 chicken wings and a box of oreo ice cream sandwiches. I could totally get into this.

I’m slowly learning about the game. There is so much to know, I can’t believe how complex DOTA is, props to everyone out there who plays it and can remember all this stuff!

We missed one match in the best of five finals, we ate more food; I learned that if you sat me down at a table with ribs I could continue to eat all of them at a steady pace until the end of time. I love ribs.

Cupcakes, potatoes, peas, beans and wine were also involved in our supper break.

After the Finals:

So the ‘International 3’ DOTA 2 finals just ended. The boys were pretty pumped that Na’Vi made it to the finals. Na’Vi lost the first (of the best of five) series. Alliance lost the second and third matches, tying it up with a win on the fourth match. Alliance took it the plate and the $$$ in the end, the boys were pretty mad… I got to watch Big Brother.

What I learned:
‘The International’ is the Superbowl of gaming. Seriously, so much food was consumed during our all-day DOTA marathon. If this is what this world is like, it is the world I want to live in.

I am not sure that I want to start playing ‘DOTA 2’, I can’t see having enough time to be addicted to the game like all of the guys I know; but I do have a new appreciation for professional gaming… and amateur gamers fanboy love for professional gaming.


Please note, we began our stream around 12pm Sunday afternoon for the pre-show and the action continued on until around 10:15pm when the tournament ended.

To find out more about DOTA 2 check out: http://www.dota2.com/


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