Dota 2 boasts a jolly impressive in-game spectator system, supporting multiple audio streams from commentator and oodles of camera options. How natural and pleasant, then, that Valve plans to sell in-game spectator passes for tournaments, much like web streams are sold now.

Read more: Team features coming soon too »

Valve's Dota 2 tournament The International introduced the game to the world last year, and now it's returning to show people how far both the game and its professional scene have come since then. So here's a friendly reminder that tickets go on sale this morning for the event running alongside PAX Prime in Seattle.

Read more: Running August 31 to September 3 »

Like so many games that are "free-to-play," Valve's planning on selling quite a bit of content through Dota 2. In fact, the Dota 2 store is opening for business, so players can begin customizing their heroes ASAP.

Unlike in League of Legends, all heroes will be available free of charge. "We believe restricting player access to heroes could be destructive to game design, so it's something we plan to avoid," Valve explained. Instead, the Dota 2 store will feature official Valve-designed items, and fan created items via Steam Workshop integration.

Read more: Get into the game with an Early Access Bundle »

Blizzard was none to pleased when Valve announced Dota 2, a commercial sequel to the popular Warcraft III mod, Defense of the Ancients All-Stars. Blizzard filed an opposition to Valve's "DOTA" trademark, claiming that the DOTA brand is tied to Warcraft and Blizzard. "Valve has no rights in or to the DOTA mark," Blizzard claimed. "Valve has never released, distributed, or sold any products using the mark DOTA, or, for that matter, any of the DOTA Marks. Valve did not coin the DOTA mark and has never participated in the creation of the DotA Mods."

In response, Valve claimed that Blizzard "lacks standing to bring this dispute." And apparently, Valve was right.

Read more: An 'agreement that helps both of us stay focused' »

Last year, Valve introduced "The International," a Dota 2 championship with a one million dollar prize. Held in Germany during Gamescom, it was the game's public debut and tested the skills of the "best Dota teams in the world."

Apparently, "The International" is an annual affair, as Valve has announced plans for a second competition. Like last year, a million dollar grand prize is at stake. However, this year's competition will take place during PAX Prime in Seattle.

Read more: Dota 2 coming 'this year' »

Dota 2 is set to be free-to-play with microtransactions, but Valve is trying something new for this iteration centered on rewarding players that contribute to the community. The company has talked about skilled players serving as "coaches" since its announcement, and this seems like an extension of that idea.

Read more: 'Reward people' who add value to the community »

We've seen some indication of microtransactions in Dota 2 since the launch of the beta, and it only makes sense for the genre. But with the latest patch, we're getting a closer look at just what's on the microtransaction docket.

Read more: Announcers, couriers, Souls, and more »

Valve's much-anticipated multiplayer action-RPG, Dota 2, will include both LAN and mod support, the developer announced today. Local-area-network enabled Dota 2 matches are obviously a nice option for all Dota 2 players, but is an especially attractive feature in China, home to the "largest Dota audience in the world."

Read more: Adding more servers »

Several hours of Steam downtime on Sunday left poor PC gamers unable to play their Steam games, caused by a power failure at Valve's data center. Initial reports suggest some of the desperate afflicted resorted to archaic and torturous forms of Sunday afternoon entertainment, including taking a stroll in the countryside, imbibing ale in a pub, and conversing with loved ones.

Read more: Valve apologizes »

Though the Dota 2 beta already has enough players to land a stable spot in Steam's top-ten list of most-played games, it's not enough. In a recent blog post, Valve explains that the beta is still closed and expanding slowly because there haven't been enough servers up and running.

"The primary reason we haven't allowed everyone access to the game is because we don't yet have enough server capacity to run all the games it would require. Our server deployment team has spent the last few months flying around the world setting up new server clusters to increase that capacity."

Read more: Autospeed to be added »

Blizzard has grumbled before about Valve Software using the name Dota 2 for its commercial sequel to the hugely popular Warcraft III mod Defense of the Ancients All-Stars--usually called simply 'DotA'--but now it's called in the lawyers. Newly-discovered paperwork, filed with the USPTO in November, show the Warcraft developer has formally opposed Valve's application to trademark "DOTA," claiming it "would cause damage and injury to Blizzard."

Read more: Valve denies trying to appropriate goodwill Blizzard developed »

If the string of developers making the same game with the exact same map weren't a big enough hint that the MOBA--Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, or 'DotA clone' to you and me--is getting big, the genre's now getting its very own mouse. Peripheral maker Razer yesterday at CES announced the Naga Hex, packing six extra buttons designed for your Doting pleasure.

Read more: Buttons for Dota players »

There's a lot to be excited for in 2012, and the Shacknews staff each have five games on their radar. The editorial team at Shacknews outlines their most anticipated games of 2012 individually. Next up we've got staff writer Alice O'Connor's list of 2012 titles.

Dota 2

"That guy is permanently invisible," I explain. "No, this one bought an item that lets him teleport," I add. "And yes, that lady's spell does one-shot kill you at this point."

I've been playing an awful lot of the Dota 2 closed beta with former Shack writer Nick Breckon, trying to teach him a little of what I learned from hundreds of hours in the original DotA mod yonks ago, and it's been awkward. When you start, it's not at all clear who any of the characters are, what they do, what their items do, what your items do, why you're supposed to attack your own allies, and how you died in two seconds when three enemy heroes materialised out of thin air.

Read more: The rest of Alice's picks for 2012 »

It looks like gamers hungry for their shot at Valve's upcoming expansion into the multiplayer online battle arena genre may be satiated soon.

"We've just finished our first significant expansion of Dota 2 server capacity around the world, and that means it's time to kick this thing up a notch," a blog post on the official Dota 2 site revealed yesterday.

Read more: Celebrate Dota 2 beta expansion with a comic »

Valve's upcoming action-RPG sequel, Dota 2, may include some measures to address the issue of players leaving matches early. While the developers acknowledge that there are certainly some understandable instances in which players leave a match prematurely (citing one Valve employee who locked himself out of his apartment when dealing with the pizza guy), Valve notes that "it's fundamentally unfulfilling for everyone," if a significant number of matches "end prematurely, for any reason."

Read more: Dota 2 to address AFK players »