The games have been played, the legends have been made, and the trophy has been lifted.
There were tears of disappointment and of joy.
After three long weekends,The International 2023is now a moment in Dota 2’s past.
This year, we’ve focused on improving the viewing experience for a broader range of fans.
So let’s take a look at this year’s changes and impact as fans and players.
The International 2023 Format
The first difference in format was in the group stage.
This meant that each team was playing so many matches that early games just didn’t feel meaningful.
Make it too big or too long and it becomes boring or exhausting.
The group stage is truly a place to begin the sorting process.
That leads us to the second, and perhaps more notable difference.
We said goodbye to the brutal and unforgiving best-of-one lower bracket matches.
The high-stakes playoff games have become a thing of the past.
While this could be gut-wrenching, that emotional aspect of competition is what makes us invested and hooked.
As humans, we empathize with others.
In this case, it means the players.
That empathy in turn nurtures emotions.
And research has shown thatpeople absorbthe emotions of others either nearby or spectating.
So the more high stakes the game is, the more powerful emotions will be.
We get swept up and away.
Think of all of the 2:0 sweeps vs 2:1 series where the last game became more thrilling to watch.
We hear a consistent message from first-time watchers: that TI is exciting, but can sometimes feel overwhelming.
There are so many matches happening, new viewers can find it difficult to understand which to focus on.
Hail the era of the weekend warrior.
Many fans felt it was exhausting to keep up with the games during the week.
Fans had to rely on recap reports to gain insight into what was happening.
With the new schedule, fans could adjust their lives with relative ease around the live matches.
The long breaks could be used to watch VODs and catch up on the action (or sleep).
New spectators could follow along more easily or at the very least more casually.
In the past, The International was a very intense and immersive experience.
Die-hard fans wore their TI weariness as a badge of honour.
Content creators became nonhuman machines churning out content around the clock running on energy drinks and junk food.
It meant a decrease in the emotional aspect of momentum and the hype building up.
The emotions that were triggered in the last thrilling series were now quelled and extinguished as the week passed.
Which is only one side.
What about the pros and those that are actually involved in competing?
Was the format or the schedule change something that they welcomed?
For example, we played against VP, and there will be only one best-of-three series in 9 days.
Imagine it, we won against VP and now we have a four-day break.
(laughs) There is no reason to do these breaks.
I don’t know.
I would rather play without the breaks.
In the group stage, we played three matches on the first day.
I also think this is kind of stupid because now there is a four-day break.
There are a lot of options but this format is the worst in my opinion.
He wasn’t the only one who felt that way.
