The International 2023 attracts viewers back to Dota 2
Dota 2 has faced some challenges in the past few years, including overpowered meta heroes and technical issues which plagued LAN events. As a result, the game's viewership has remained stagnant for the past couple of years. However, Valve implemented some new changes and successfully attracted viewers back to the game just in time for The International 2023.
Despite the tournament's significantly lesser prize pool, Dota 2 fans still tuned in to watch The International, the most prestigious tournament in the professional Dota 2 scene. The tournament did not disappoint, as the participating teams battled fiercely to avoid elimination during the group stages.
Moreover, the participating team's efforts to stay in the tournament created unlikely upsets. These upsets in the group stage attracted more viewers to the tournament.
A New Record
Team Spirit At The International 2021.Credits: Valve
The series between Team Spirit and Shopify Rebellion attracted 748k viewers as Team Spirit secured a slot in the playoff upper bracket. Last year, this peak eclipses last years 680k peak.
Team Spirit vs Shopify Rebellion Viewership statistics.Credits: Esports Charts
The increase in viewership is likely due to Valve’s decision to move The International back to its home soil, Seattle. This decision favours the audience living in America and Europe as the tournament timings are convenient for them.
The Considerable Factors
The International 2022.Credits: Valve
Last year, the tournament was held in Singapore, favouring audiences in China and Southeast Asia. However, the majority of the audiences from those regions tune in from different platforms rather than Twitch, which also impacted the statistics for the viewership.
The International 2022 Viewership statistics.Credits: Esports Charts
Another factor comes into play when comparing the current iteration of TI with its predecessors. The International 2023 features a new format with four groups. There is no round-robin stage. Instead, the new tournament format is much simpler and cleaner. Despite the four concurrent group stages streams, these streams are consumable for the viewers.
Furthermore, Valve also learned a valuable lesson in their previous TI. Their production quality was a disaster at The International 2022 - from match delays to hygiene issues, viewers were quick to tune out from the tournament. Fortunately, The International 2023 has had smooth productions thus far, bringing in positive feedback from the fans.
The seeding decider series has concluded, the playoffs will start soon. All the series played on the main stage will be Bo3 ( best of three). The grand final Bo5 (best of five) series will be on 29th October.
Featured Image Source: Valve
Read More at Strafe Esports: Our Predictions for The International 2023 Upper Bracket