A variety of new features were added to the The International 2016 Compendium on Wednesday, including new player cards and Valve’s take on the daily fantasy competitions that exploded in popularity with sports fans. But the most exciting addition, for those Dota 2 players lucky enough to own a HTC Vive, is undoubtedly the addition of the VR spectator mode teased back in March.
Many of the features delivered in this week’s Compendium update should be familiar to longtime members of the Dota 2 community; particularly those who watch Valve’s annual Dota 2 world championship event on a regular basis. The new patch delivered the player, team and tournament predictions we all knew would return for this year’s International. But the predictions have been expanded as well. Now, Dota 2 fans can also complete a bracket for this year’s tournament, similar to the brackets frequently filled out for March Madness every year. Correct predictions earn points for your Battle Pass. A perfect bracket will add an extra 50 levels to your digital book.
But that isn’t the big news for anyone lucky enough to have space for HTC’s first virtual reality headset.The big news is the debut of the VR spectator mode teased in a Vive trailer earlier this year. To our knowledge, Valve never commented on the tease, leaving fans wondering if/when we’d ever see the alternate viewing option released to the public. But now we have an answer. Beginning this week, those who own an HTC Vive can watch any Dota 2 match, including next week’s world championship tournament, in a virtual theater that can be filled with charts, graphs and avatars of the current players
All of the new features are now available to anyone who purchased the Dota 2 Battle Pass. Given the lack of purchase requirement listed in the studio’s VR FAQ, the new spectator mode seems to be available to anyone who owns a Vive.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a new VR headset to order.
Don’t judge me.
Be sure to check back with iDigitalTimes.com and follow Scott on Twitter for more Dota 2 news throughout 2016 and for however long Valve supports Dota 2 in the months following launch.
