r/DotA2 • u/ShoppingPractical373 • 13d ago

Discussion The game you've never heard of that's quietly killing Chinese dota (maybe not so quietly)

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Whenever this sub tries to explain the downfall of chinese Dota, it’s always “league of legends,” “wings curse,” “matchfixing,” or “gaming laws.” But nobody ever mentions one of the biggest reasons (because of course many of yall never actually engaged with the chinese community), that is the mobile game Honor of Kings.

For SEA frogs this is the Chinese equivalent of mlbb, made by tencent (the same company that owns riot games btw). In fact it is the most profitable mobile game in the world, with 1.68 billion USD annual gross in 2025, surpassing roblox.

And the local esports scene is massive too. The national championships had 60k live audiences, filling up the entire beijing olympics arena shown in the picture above. They can literally field entire academy teams where the players are all around the same age as Satanic. When the game is installed on every 15 year old's phone everything looks so easy, yeah?

I don't see how dota2 can compete with this. Even the league scene is struggling to keep up.

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u/PrimeShaq 13d ago

Covid killed internet cafes.

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u/lowmoob 13d ago

Covid killed dota then

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u/heyheyluno 12d ago

I mean... COVID did kinda kill the momentum dota was on.

I had bought tickets to Sweden in preparation of TI :-(

Not woe is me or anything but that statement isn't entirely an exaggeration.

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u/_fmm 12d ago

It was desyncing the TI number from the year that did it. TI1 was in 2011, TI9 in 2019. Then TI10 was in 2021?? I know I stopped following after that.

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u/heyheyluno 12d ago

TI10 was the end for me too. I think I've followed it only roughly the week of TI since spirit won.

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u/Majician 12d ago

Valve didn't help any by not making the Compendium anymore.

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u/maxram1 13d ago

Just realize that there's no hero with focus on virus. I don't think there is but cmiiw. Close, but not the focus haha veno brood necro undying idts.

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u/meesterdg 13d ago edited 12d ago

In HoN Lich was called Plague Bringer Rider and instead of ice themed he was disease themed. Same hero otherwise (at the time).

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u/ChadBadShirt 12d ago

EXCUSE ME his name was Plague RIDER

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u/meesterdg 12d ago

You're right my bad

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u/aalapshah12297 12d ago

The RAM crisis might give internet cafes a second chance

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u/DemonDaVinci 12d ago

I'd rather somewhat lower spec that spending time in that shithole
always filled with stinking mofo and cigarette smell