The Dota 2 Asia Scene has disappointed fans of the region since the start of Dota 2. The results the Southeast Asia region produced on The Internationals stage left much to be desired. With the region stuck in mediocrity forever, will there be some glimmer of hope in the 2022-2023 DPC Season?
Dota 2 in Southeast Asia is Going Nowhere?
During the Post-TI roster shuffle, the Southeast Asia region saw multiple changes in its rosters. Although the movement in the region is high, optimism is not to be desired as the players in the region are still the same, only with different jerseys.
Why is that a bad thing, you ask? While multiple moves shook the rosters of almost every major team in the region, I highly doubt that it will change the mediocrity the region has been experiencing for the last few years.
The Post-TI roster shuffle in Southeast Asia only saw teams from the same region exchanging players with only a few exceptions. We already saw this pattern unfold time and time again, wherein the region undergoes an internal shuffling, only getting players from the same region. It is a bad thing because it is far from the change the region needs to get over the hump finally.
During the roster shuffle, we saw the formation of Blacklist Rivalry, an all-Filipino “all-star” team featuring long-time Dota 2 Asia scene legends in the region, such as Kuku, Tims, Raven, Eyyou, and Karl.
For a region that has never won a The International trophy, the region deserves a more drastic change to have a fighting chance.
SEA Dota 2: The Story So Far
Southeast Asia is commonly dubbed as one of the most competitive regions in the scene. The Dota 2 Asia ranking is never stagnant. No team was able to dominate Southeast Asia like how Evil Geniuses or PSG.LGD reigned over North America and China for multiple years.
Teams in Southeast Asia have always vied for control of the region, always struggling to reign supreme with no team having the ability to command the region. In recent years, the region saw the likes of TNC, Geek Fam, T1, Fnatic, and BOOM Esports on top.
Despite the region being competitive, Southeast Asia never enjoyed much success on the international scene. Although people say Southeast Asia is a competitive region, it failed to translate that into success on the international stage.
No Southeast Asia representative has ever won a TI. The region has not been to the Grand Finals in The International. The best finish for a Southeast Asian team in any TI stage is Orange Esports. They finished third-place finish at TI3 back in 2013. After that, the next best thing would be Fnatic’s fourth-place finish at TI6 in 2016.
In most recent memory, The International 11 was a heartbreak for the Southeast Asia community. Despite TI11 being held in Singapore, all three representatives failed to capitalize on its home court advantage. Talon Esports bowed out early in the tournament in 17th-18th place. Fnatic only managed to finish in 13th-16th place. BOOM Esports had by far the best showing of all the Southeast Asian teams in the tournament. They pulled off a surprise victory over TI10 champions Team Spirit in the first round of the lower bracket. However, they lost to PSG.LGD in the next round and finished in 9th-12th place
