Role-Playing RTS Strategy Games – IceFrog’s Revolution

Yes, english is my second langauge and that is my excuse to my horrible grammar. Deal with it.

LoL, HoN, DotA, and Demigods may all be similar, but the gameplay are extremely different. The only two RTS games that are actually extremely similar is Heros of Newerth, and Dota. The RTS games, or real time strategy games, are becoming more advanced and propelled to be more popular. This blog will just explain the content and differences of these games.

The non-debatable fact, is that IceFrog, a users on battle.net from Warcraft III, the maker of the map DotA All Stars, Defense of the Ancients All Stars, was on of the users to make first of many maps on Warcraft III who’s gameplay revovled around RTS combat. Real time strategy games just revovles around you playing a specific hero/character, with 4 specific abilities, some passive, and some are actives.

This video is a good trailer for DotA 2. The game where IceFrog teamed with Steam, to make DotA on a better game platform.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-cSFPIwMEq4

Some background about RTS games before we move on with just the differences and similarities between these games that I know of. We cannot deny that IceFrog has started a gaming genre that is extremely popular. He may not founded this genre, but he maybe the person respoinsible to promote it.

The gameplay is usually when the game starts off, you get to pick your hero/champion/god/character. For the sake of me being bais towards DotA, I will use hero’s to represent these characters/champion. These heros all have different strengths and weaknesses. There two teams, The Sentinel and The Scourge. 5 heros per team. The objective of the game is to destroy the other’s teams base. To get to the base there are 3 different lanes, top, middle, and bottom lane. With the lanes, there are things trying to stop you. Creep monsters and towers. Yeah this sounds pretty lame. The heros are the key factors in the lanes, where to kill both of the monsters and towers you gain gold and exp. This allows your hero to become stronger.

DotA, the platform of the game is more based on teamwork, and tactics revovled around different aspects of the game. The Pro’s usually think the game more oreintated with creep kills/denys and farming of gold. The factor that make DotA a different game everytime, is the combinations of preferences of people and how they play. For example:

Say the Scourge team has Rikimaru and Grondar, two heros that have the stealth ability, great for “ganking”, where they go to the lanes and play 3-4 players versus two people usually to a side lane. However, they can also stay in that lane and just keep pushing until the other team decides to gank them. The other team has other options as well. However, the other aspect of the game is attributes. By increasing either strength, agility, or inteligence attribute, it gives bonuses in different areas. Increasing strength gives more hitpoints and hitpoints regeration, agility increases attack speed, and inteligence increase mana and mana points. Depending on the hero, the hero will have a main attribute where when it increases, the attack damage of the hero increases as well.

To learn more about mechanics of the game, please research on your own. Gameplay videos usually show how the game works and explains better than I can with words. I will move on to the debate recently that will be a forever conflit like Jerusalem land problem, with Palestinians and Israelis.

The has been a lot of debate which RTS game is better. Players from DotA, are righteous players who believe that are the prophets of the game. Players of League of Legends love the free-to-play feature, and believes it is the most balanced game. Also, HoN players who are not paitent enough for DotA 2 Release where they think it is a better remake of DotA than the Steam version. (HoN has the exact same heros with exact abilities, just different names for it.)

THIS BLOG’S main purpose is for two simple reasons.

Reason One: All the RTS games are different and are preffered by the players.

• League of Legends: Most “noob” friendly RTS game, where it focus more of solo play and focused more on the “jungling” technique. This game is great when you play for just fun and feel like not playing to play the game. This game also implements something different, which makes players consider it much more different, called masteries, runes and summoner spells. Since the game does cap the max level of the hero of 18, instead of 25 like in DotA, the need something that adds change to the game. The higher your level the more masteries and runes you have like in World of Warcraft. This is a big consideration in the balance of the game. In my opinion, the runes allow players with rich parents who are spoiled to buy these things, and empower the “champion” much stronger than other players. In my opinion, because of masteries, runes, and summoner spells, the game is extremely unbalanced. 
• Free-to-Play, but you can buy Riot Points where it gives you perks.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

• DotA All Stars (Current Version – DotA v 6.74 – Warcraft III): This is just one of the melee maps on Warfract III, where I think RTS games originated. This is the most basic level of RTS games, and it mostly filled with cheaters now-a-days with maphackers. (Map-hacking is when you know where your enemies are at all teams without Fog-Of-War) This game is the most balanced version of RTS games.
• http://www.getdota.com/ For the lastest map of DotA.
• Around 35$ for Warcraft III.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

• Heros of Newerth: This is the exact remake of DotA , just on a different platform. The game has different names for the heros and items. The shopping, or the process of buying items is different with implented “noob” friendly actions of recommended items. The game is still currently unbalanced with the spell damage of heros, and the effects of items on the heros strengths and weaknesses. (My opinion) Not a free game ethier.
• Around 25$ for the game.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

• DotA 2 (Powered by Steam working with IceFrog) : This is a game in the making. A true fan of RTS games will have or is working on the DotA 2 Beta. The beta version is so much already balanced, and has been worked on for over a year now. IceFrog a person who knows how the game must be balanced maybe responsible for such a late delay in the release of the game. Of course steam understands that this game will be the next hit since Counter-Strike, Team-Fortress 2, and Unreal Tournament.
• Steam recently have made the game F2P, free-to-play, and incorporated a “customize” feature of the game. The Hero’s can now have better/cool looking armor, for cheap prices. Unlike League, all the Hero’s are unlocked, to not hinder against any players that is willing to spend the extra money on the game.
• Visit this website for the most recent updates on Dota 2. http://store.steampowered.com/app/570/
• Also visit this website for the blog of Dota 2. http://blog.dota2.com/

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

The second reason is how many people are confusing the gameplay with game like WoW. Yes, it is similar where we cast spells and kill other people, but comparing Dota 2 with regular role playing games, is like comparing solitaire with Texas Hold’um.