- Indian Dota 2 drastically slowed down around 2018-19 and ostensibly died in 2020.
- Teams, tournament organizers, and other local esports businesses have steered clear of the game and have moved on to other titles like PUBG Mobile and Valorant.
- The full story is part of AFK Gaming's Premium Bundle - Esports Explained
Despite India’s growing esports scene in 2020, with the total prize pool swelling to over INR 50 M ($692 K) and viewership ballooning to record numbers, India’s Dota 2 scene has come to a grinding halt and has ostensibly died. Viewership, number of tournaments, and even professional teams have all gone down drastically, making Dota 2 ventures an unattractive investment in India.
In 2019, the total prize pool for Indian Dota 2 tournaments was in excess of INR 38.3 M ($524 K). If we discount ESL One Mumbai and COBX Masters (international tournaments hosted in India), the year’s total prize pool stood at INR 9 M ($124 K). This was already significantly lower than the net Dota 2 prize pool in 2018, which amounted to INR 12.1 M ($166 K). In 2020 however, this dropped to INR 1.26 M ($17 K).
Teams, tournament organizers, and other local esports businesses have steered clear of the game. Dota 2 rosters were dropped with organizations leaning into other titles like PUBG Mobile, Free Fire, or even Valorant. Many of the game’s fans and players have started playing and spectating other esports titles.
What exactly lead to the downfall of Dota 2 in India? And could something have been done to prevent it? The full story is part of AFK Gaming’s premium content collection.
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