Do you want an online strategy that is never the same; a game that will get you hardcore addicted; one of the most popular games in the world, yet one of the least known. Well, you’ve come to the right place, because I’m here to tell you about DotA! It is free (sort of). It’s a map used off the game of Warcraft 3. The maps are updated all the time for balance issues and issuing new items and heroes. This game has a million different item builds.

There are 94 heroes to choose from, all with different abilities. Check out all heroes at http://www.playdota.com/heroes. The point of each game is the same, take down the enemy base. But there are so many elements to it. There are 3 types of heroes. You have Intel heroes; which are usually spell/mana based. Agility; which are usually damage per second heroes. And finally strength; which are usually your tanks. Most games are 5v5 but you can play with less. Leagues and tournaments usually require five players.

Throneit.com is an open league where anyone can play DotA’s Tier 1 games. When you receive enough elo (experience points) they let you move on to Tier 2, which is a better, more competitive gaming experience. The highest tier you can get to is Tier 3. Tier 3 is new and still in the alpha stage. Garena.com, has DotA as one of the games it throws a ton of tournaments for. Some tournaments have pretty big payouts. Most have small prizes unless it’s a special one.

DotA has a huge learning curve; so it will take a while to get used to. It has so many items and plenty of different characters to learn. I would recommend for you to go on Battlenet through Warcraft 3 and play the public custom DotA maps to learn how to play. But the best way to learn is through the AI maps, which you can download at GetDotA.com along with the main updated maps and the stable map. The stable map is what most tournaments use. Don’t get frustrated too early. People are really serious about this game at times. And they can get irritated at new players. But just ignore them. I will put up tips, hints, strategies, and other things soon.

Zippy Gamer has its own DotA team which I’ve started. I am Angel[ZG] on USEast. We are looking for some solid members. If you’re interested in trying, send me a message.