Valve has released a significant update for its MOBA Dota 2, called New Frontiers.
It expands the map and brings meaningful gameplay, matchmaking, and user interface changes, among many other things.
While the core objectives of the game remain the same, with streets equally spaced from each other and victory objectives still in the center of the map, there is 40 percent more terrain, meaning there is plenty of room to gather resources.
Digging into the extension, both main forests have been reconnected, meaning sight placement and cultivation strategies need to be reconsidered. Roshan, who is even more of a tanker, now has two new pits in the northwest and southeast corners of the map.
Elsewhere, two gates now connect the corners of the map near the safe lane towers, allowing players to instantly teleport from one edge of the map to the other.
The update adds a fourth hero type called Universal. This is a new main stat group consisting of existing heroes who take 0.6 damage from each stat of any attribute. There are also big hero balance changes and new items to fuss over.
There’s a new matchmaking algorithm called Glico, which, Valve said, should let you match up with other players at a similar skill level “quickly and accurately.”
As for the UI, health information is upgraded with this update, including health bar barrier, health bar pips, and health cost.
Comprehensive – and I do mean comprehensive – patch notes are on the official Dota 2 website.