What do LoL players think of Dota 2?

Dylightfull·Aug 11, 2015·3 votes·7,901 views

So I recently began to start playing Dota 2 because I have some friends that prefer it over League of Legends, and after playing ~40 hours of it and ~140 hours of LoL, I have to say...

Yeah, it's pretty fun, and I think I like it as much as I like LoL. I feel like both Dota and LoL have their own differences in playstyle, mechanics, pacing, etc., and that the whole "better MOBA" argument is stupid because it all boils down to your experience in playing the game. That being said, what do you guys think of Dota 2? If you've ever played it, please share your experience and opinions below.

And for the love of God, try not to engage any flamewars. Everyone has their own opinion and we need to respect it.

30 Comments

stàrAug 12, 20153 votes

I've been playing league since preseason 2, I tried Dota 2 not long ago and steam now tells me I have 318 hours played and I watched most of TI which awesome btw.

You are right they are very different games and have very different feels. Before I played dota 2 I thought their player base was really cocky calling league easy and a bad game and at first when I tried dota 2, it was really hard to get into cause it felt slow, the turn animations made kiting impossible like you do in league and it felt clunky, the shop was confusing, death timers got me into playing bullet chess (Longer than in league), and I didn't understand why my auto attacks sometimes missed for no apparent reason (uphill mechanic).

League is so much easier to get into and noob friendly but now that I have some hours in Dota 2, I think it's much more competitive, fun to watch, interesting and rewarding. I love how picks and item choice can matter so much.

So my opinion on Dota 2? I think it's awfully hard to get into and the tutorials suck and it's really shitty over all AT THE START but if you make it though as of right now BY THE END OF IT it's far more competitive, rewarding and interesting + voice chat + queing items + replays + custom games + multiple game modes (SUCH AS FUCKING TEAM DEATHMATCH!!) + You can custom your hero + sandbox

tldr; Dota 2 is a better game but really hard and punishing on new aspiring players and the difference in pace and hero/champion movement can feel really slugish to us league players.

DylightfullAug 12, 20152 votes

Oh yeah. Definitely loving the more strategy based plays with high reward. Being a Heimerdinger main, what'd I'd usually do during, say, a pre-post-laning phase gank, is place down all of my turrets including my ult turret, use my E to stun someone, Zhonya's and get a double kill. Same strat every time, usually same outcome every time, and little to no actual thought put into it. Meanwhile, whilst playing Dota heroes like Disruptor, I have to predict where the enemy is going, use my teleport ability at just the right time, get my barrier in the right location, plan out teleport + barrier combos, etc. It's definitely a lot more challenging and fun.

Also, side note, I'm not badmouthing Heimerdinger here. I freaking love the little guy. Fun to play, easy to use, and he also references Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and Daft Punk, which are 2 of my favorite things.

HayRossAug 12, 20153 votes

As a league of legends player, here are my thoughts on Dota 2:

Dota 2 is a game.

That's about it

DylightfullAug 12, 20151 votes

Well thought, well thought indeed.

KarlyrAug 12, 20152 votes

I'd rather play League for a single reason, Play time. MOBAs are an intensive learning experience that becomes more fun the more you play it.

I palyed DOTA 2, Strife, HotS and a little bit of Smite; All three games came to have the short end of the stick and I knew why when I started playing HotS with friends one more time. I know nothing about the damn game. And it bothers me everytime I start a new game.

KeepMeHumbleAug 12, 20152 votes

DotA2 is not worth bothering with, not worth the time and effort you have to invest on it when you could have been playing League instead, or even some other game. Nowadays new MOBAs have been released worth checking out, not like a few years ago when you didn't have much choice.

For example besides League I also play Smite, lots of fun playing a MOBA in a different perspective, game is easy to get into but still has plenty depth to chew at, still a bit new and needs some polishing but it's growing fast. Another one is Heroes of the Storm, HotS does it right because it puts the emphasis on what's fun in a MOBA, the fights and the strategy, of course you need to learn new things in every new game you play but in a good game it's worth it.

I spent almost a year on DotA2 and just feel like I got cheated out of my time, when at every turn (literally...) playing the game feels like a chore, and for what, sorry but I don't consider that fun and I don't think it makes for a very enjoyable or even interesting game.

DylightfullAug 12, 20151 votes

Interesting. I myself played HotS during its closed beta, and I found it to be less fighting based and more objective and strategy based. Smite I dabbled in, but never really cared to pick up. Maybe I'll try it out more thoroughly some day.

AntiSkillshotAug 12, 20152 votes

Two things. I laugh at DotA players that go "DotA's heroes are harder than League's, just because of Invoker". Yes, one hero is enough to make a game harder than another. Meanwhile, Wraith King makes Trynd and Yi look complex as fuck. The other thing is... way too much RNG for me to like it. I nearly quit Warframe, just because of the RNG on the blueprint drops. Took me more tries to get just the Equinox Day Systems than it did for me to get the whole Mesa set... And people believe Mesa's a bitch to get.

Also, I have nothing to work towards in DotA 2.

DylightfullAug 12, 20152 votes

Oh yeah. Tried it out for a bit back in February, and my biggest problem was that there wasn't any sense of progression and it didn't feel like there was anything to work towards.

On the contrary, I also realize that sometime "working toward" that 6300 IP champion can feel like a chore, so I'm thankful for Dota 2's hero selection.

Also, somewhat unrelated, my favorite hero is Disruptor, or as I like to call him "Space Wizard, the dinosaur riding lightning samurai." Not just because of his kit, but his design. The reason I call him that can be seen here, by the way: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=498345247
(and for the record, that Immortal Resistive Pinfold was a gift from a friend of mine. I prefer not to uncase things in any video game.)

SLangedEdgeAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

Two things. I laugh at DotA players that go "DotA's heroes are harder than League's, just because of Invoker". Yes, one hero is enough to make a game harder than another. Meanwhile, Wraith King makes Trynd and Yi look complex as fuck. The other thing is... way too much RNG for me to like it. I nearly quit Warframe, just because of the RNG on the blueprint drops. Took me more tries to get just the Equinox Day Systems than it did for me to get the whole Mesa set... And people believe Mesa's a bitch to get.

Also, I have nothing to work towards in DotA 2.

Sure invoker, meepo, vissage, lone druid, io, batrider, etc etc etc.

While WK is the poster child of easy skill usage, he's still prolly harder to play than most LoL heroes. You're melee, you move slow, you have 1 cc that takes most of ur mana pool, easy to harass, etc. Also, you build way more active items that lol doesn't have. Soul ring, activate to get enough mana to cast stun or to trigger your ult, blink dagger to get in position, bkb to protect, refresher to get more lives, halbred to disable. While you only have Q to stun, you have 2-3 active items at any given time.

Nothing to work for? why not just be better at the game, raise your MMR, get to the leader boards. Master more of the 110 unique hereos (cause you have access to all of them). This is a competitive game you dont need a XP carrot to keep you logging in. If you want that there's MMO's and Diablo to play.

AntiSkillshotAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

Sure invoker, meepo, vissage, lone druid, io, batrider, etc etc etc.

While WK is the poster child of easy skill usage, he's still prolly harder to play than most LoL heroes. You're melee, you move slow, you have 1 cc that takes most of ur mana pool, easy to harass, etc. Also, you build way more active items that lol doesn't have. Soul ring, activate to get enough mana to cast stun or to trigger your ult, blink dagger to get in position, bkb to protect, refresher to get more lives, halbred to disable. While you only have Q to stun, you have 2-3 active items at any given time.

Nothing to work for? why not just be better at the game, raise your MMR, get to the leader boards. Master more of the 110 unique hereos (cause you have access to all of them). This is a competitive game you dont need a XP carrot to keep you logging in. If you want that there's MMO's and Diablo to play.

Azir feels like Meepo. Odd to say that, as they're not really that similar. I'll hand it to you about the items, though. Though, I, technically, could play Karthus like Zeus with a Refresher Orb-like item.

So, I need to get better at a game to feel progression? That's actually pretty bad. I seek entertainment in my games, not a ticket to being a professional. Also, I greatly despise MMOs and many ARPGs because of the repetitiveness of the quests. Go kill X number of this specific enemy or go collect X number of this specific item. Pretty much all the quests are in many MMOs I've played.

SLangedEdgeAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

Azir feels like Meepo. Odd to say that, as they're not really that similar. I'll hand it to you about the items, though. Though, I, technically, could play Karthus like Zeus with a Refresher Orb-like item.

So, I need to get better at a game to feel progression? That's actually pretty bad. I seek entertainment in my games, not a ticket to being a professional. Also, I greatly despise MMOs and many ARPGs because of the repetitiveness of the quests. Go kill X number of this specific enemy or go collect X number of this specific item. Pretty much all the quests are in many MMOs I've played.

Getting better is the progression. Like sports, do you play cause after enough games kobe will show up and play for you? No you play to school ur friends or whoever you find at the rec center. its to challenge yourself. If you play the game for the stuff you unlock, then the game itself isn't good, you're just there for the carrot.

I'm sure most LoL players aren't playing the game cause of the carrot...its just a stupid defense for an unnecessary argument. If you got a fully unlocked LoL account you would still be playing just as much...and if that wasn't true you really should quit the game cause even you think its bad.

Aziz doesn't play like meepo. If any of ur clones die, you die. You need to farm multiple lanes and jungle camps to make the use of his value (intense micro). Then the big hitter is getting blink and poof'n yourself for huge magic dmg.

AntiSkillshotAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

Getting better is the progression. Like sports, do you play cause after enough games kobe will show up and play for you? No you play to school ur friends or whoever you find at the rec center. its to challenge yourself. If you play the game for the stuff you unlock, then the game itself isn't good, you're just there for the carrot.

I'm sure most LoL players aren't playing the game cause of the carrot...its just a stupid defense for an unnecessary argument. If you got a fully unlocked LoL account you would still be playing just as much...and if that wasn't true you really should quit the game cause even you think its bad.

Aziz doesn't play like meepo. If any of ur clones die, you die. You need to farm multiple lanes and jungle camps to make the use of his value (intense micro). Then the big hitter is getting blink and poof'n yourself for huge magic dmg.

I do have a fully unlocked account. With the exception being the mastery system being finished. Before the mastery system, I generally wouldn't play League, unless there was a new champion or an event was going on. And I'd commonly play in ARAM not classic, before that system. Here's the thing. I do seek entertainment and all, but you get better as you progress. Getting better being the progression is terrible to me. Which is mildly ironic, being as I greatly enjoy Dark Souls, which uses that logic. Well, uses both types of logic, but you get my point. There's a sense of progression with white mist doors, shortcuts, levels, and bosses. But you gain general knowledge about enemies and the like the longer you play.
I would rather have a guise of progression, than it just being "Only progression is just you getting better at the game."

Thank you for correcting my ignorance. I was unaware that if one clone died, all the Meepos under your control died.

SLangedEdgeAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

I do have a fully unlocked account. With the exception being the mastery system being finished. Before the mastery system, I generally wouldn't play League, unless there was a new champion or an event was going on. And I'd commonly play in ARAM not classic, before that system. Here's the thing. I do seek entertainment and all, but you get better as you progress. Getting better being the progression is terrible to me. Which is mildly ironic, being as I greatly enjoy Dark Souls, which uses that logic. Well, uses both types of logic, but you get my point. There's a sense of progression with white mist doors, shortcuts, levels, and bosses. But you gain general knowledge about enemies and the like the longer you play.
I would rather have a guise of progression, than it just being "Only progression is just you getting better at the game."

Thank you for correcting my ignorance. I was unaware that if one clone died, all the Meepos under your control died.

It seems like you're the exception. And while you do enjoy this game, by the fact that you mostly queue aram, i don't think this game is as interesting for you nemore. If you're chasing the carrot, you should just take a break play something else. HoTS has a good amount of grind for a new player and would prolly give you lots of enjoyment.

Meh, dota has so much going on, its hard to keep abreast of it if you don't actually queue up the game. But yea i play to better myself. Get that mmr, get that win rate up. I still find it fun to land wombo combos, play weird comps, win or lose tough games. I find myself every so often taking on a foreign champ and trying to play them decently (i haven't even ventured into playing meepo voker etc).

AntiSkillshotAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

It seems like you're the exception. And while you do enjoy this game, by the fact that you mostly queue aram, i don't think this game is as interesting for you nemore. If you're chasing the carrot, you should just take a break play something else. HoTS has a good amount of grind for a new player and would prolly give you lots of enjoyment.

Not a fan of Blizzard. That's pretty much why I haven't touched HotS, Starcraft, WoW, or any of their other games.

DeadlyQuestionAug 12, 20152 votes

I'm surprised to see very little/no "lol dota sux" type bullshit here.

Actually, I suppose I'm less surprised because of the amount of available MOBAs today. The diversity really has people trying new things and not being so stuck up about one or the other, compared to a few years ago when League and DotA were practically the only two worth playing.

Anyway.

What I realized is that the biggest reason any player seriously prefers one of these two MOBAs over the other is that whichever one a player started playing first and became used to is the game they generally prefer and are willing to provide their personal defense for. It usually basically boiled down to "This is not the play style I'm used to, I'd rather play the game I'm more familiar with and have invested my muscle memory towards," but instead of putting it that way, players of either game would resort to getting offended and expressing themselves with the flame and salt of an inbred toddler.

I resisted playing League or DotA for years before giving in (I can't remember why I initially resisted or eventually gave in) but my choice came down to which game most of my friends were playing. One selfish assfuck who consistently regarded herself before anyone else in her life played DotA (not correlating the two) while every other of my gaming friends played League, so I chose League. Later, after being fed up with League's toxic community, I went to DotA and gave it 6 months of my time before coming back to League.

Both games have pros and cons. Both games have champions that involve strategy and champions that don't. Both games have terrible children painting the chat with vile hate speech and verbal abuse (and both games do seemingly little to punish these behaviors). Both games have serious balance issues that get tweaked and fucked up and then tweaked again, constantly.

The play styles are different; your alternative options of turning the tide in battle are different and your strategy of managing resources are different. The only reasons to play one over the other are all arbitrary. Maybe you would rather play the one you're more familiar with, maybe you switch because all of your friends are playing the other.. but they both have serious drawbacks and satisfying executions of play strategy.

redniwediSAug 12, 20151 votes

While I don't like it as much as I like League I've been known to play a bit of Dota 2. It has a very different philosophy on balance that can be great when you want to play but also need a break from League.

Of course when I play I try to play Winner as much as possible, but still.

DylightfullAug 12, 20151 votes

From what I've heard, Dota's way of balancing things is making everything just as OP as the thing people want nerfed.

redniwediSAug 12, 20151 votes

That's how it feels at the very least. Everyone feels strong, and yet there are also many times where you feel helpless against someone.

League has far less of that helpless feeling, but there are also champions that, at times, feel useless.

SLangedEdgeAug 12, 20151 votes

{quoted}

From what I've heard, Dota's way of balancing things is making everything just as OP as the thing people want nerfed.

Kinda sorta. They really try to leave your str intact but further nerf you weakness. The game has been around long enough that they rarely have to bring out a hammer when a bit of tapering is all that is needed. There are heroes that don't get a lot of use, but they're still enjoyable to play. What they were good at they still are, its just that their contribution may not be as important to the team strat/comp.

insaiyanbaccaAug 12, 20151 votes

i dont rly know how i feel about on one hand i loved the original one but the 2nd one just seems so much different its not the same and i dont care for that.

you lovemeeAug 12, 20151 votes

I actually like Dota2's hero model on how it's all free and you can customize so much on HUD and announcers. Gameplay wise on which 1 is better is 100% personal opinion. Oh I also enjoy all of their severs, there are like 15 different severs now to decrease your ping

S2C2Xd9KOyAug 12, 20151 votes

I feel as if comparing League and Dota 2 are similar to comparing a game like Yugioh to Magic. (League/Yugioh compared to Magic/Dota) So in my opinion , League is somewhat of a prettier game, while I feel Yugioh artworks and rarities are nicer (in a different way) than the artwork in Magic. While the Dota map(S) aren't ugly, they aren't as aesthetically appealing to me. (Not saying I dont like the Dota map appearance or MTG artwork, I just prefer the other over it).

I realize now comparing these 2 to 2 TCG's might be a bit harder than I thought.

Now, Yugioh to me seems a lot more friendly to a wider audience. The artwork is very appealing and you can argue the game is easier than Magic. Yes Yugioh does have chain orders/weird rulings and a lot of potentially complicated combos to pull off, but Magic also requires you to manage your mana and creatures over your turn and your opponents, the main difference being your cards have costs and different strength/weaknesses to the abilities other creatures may have (flash, reach, flying etc).

Comparatively, I think League is prettier and a lot of the champions are more simple (while some are more complicated), and is more friendly to a wider age range (unfortunately). While in my opinion, DOTA is like Magic, because they both (once again, imo), require more strategy to be played at a higher level.

(Briefly back to the art thing. I think League and Yugiho compare because their art styles are typically very vibrant. Like monsters in yugioh look somewhat badass and half of the females are aesthetically appealing, meanwhile in DOTA/MTG, the map is a bit grungier, just like the artwork. The undead actually look undead and the artwork tells more of a story and kind of shows the effect, rather than just showcase a badass picture of the monster).

I realize now that it was a lot easier to simply compare the 2 card games and add similarities of the 2 MOBAs between them. Then, again, I realize that people who don't play MTG or Yugioh will have no clue what the fuck I'm talking about, so I just wasted like 8 minutes typing something that most people won't understand, and even the people who do understand, will have a hard time reading it because its 6am and I can barely even understand what I'm saying.

TL;DR: at the end of the day, it comes down to play preference imo. Both are decent MOBAs with their similarities (as all mobas have), and then their differences.

DylightfullAug 12, 20152 votes

I can kind of understand what you're saying. I've seen cards from both games and can definitely agree with you on the art style thing, and also the whole thing with Yugiho being more accessible and Magic being more complicated.

Also, it's always good to see another east coaster around here! Can't wait for my ping to actually be somewhat low for once.

S2C2Xd9KOyAug 13, 20151 votes

I was just trying to say that League and Yugioh are similar in the sense that they're both kind of cut and paste games. You get through your early game, you make very similar movements and your mechanics/skill are kind of more straight forward, while there are more complicated things.

Magic and Dota are more difficult immediately. The same thing won't happen every game and you have to work around different elements of the games respectively.

I live in Toronto and my ping sits around 70 usually. Not awful, but I'm really looking forward to being around 10-40

IxtaliKingAug 12, 20151 votes

I like that Dota 2 really pushes the boat out when it comes to their characters, they don't play it as safe as riot does. The only reason I don't play Dota 2 is because my pc is a toaster, otherwise I'd try to learn it. I do feel overall that LoL is cleaner and more accessible though.

SLangedEdgeAug 13, 20151 votes

I'm really not a fan of HoTS either. Gave 'em a fair shake, but its just not compelling for me. I do play here n there for some gold bonus to unlock characters incase one day it becomes a reasonable mobo/game.

You may want to check in on dota once the reborn beta is fully baked in. Their new source 2 rebuild. While you may not enjoy the characters or the standard map, the new release should tout many well supported mini games that you can get into without the heavy dota knowledge. There's even a LOL remake within it, iono how good it'll be but its new n fresh (for now)

DylightfullAug 13, 20151 votes

Not sure if I said it in the opening paragraph, but I am playing Dota, and I love it. Reborn looks sick.

Earl EulrichAug 13, 20151 votes

Dota2 has just waay too many unnecessary "complications" and forces you to fight the game rather than to fight actual players...i really loved the old Dota back then, but 10years later it´s really not a good game anymore. There would have been a lot of potential for Dota2, unfortunatelly they decided to forsake all risks and make a 1:1 clone more or less.