Dota 2 fans left disappointed as TI 2025 fails to honor yearly tradition
Summary
The International 2025 delivered thrilling matches and crowned Team Falcons as champions, but broke a recent TI ritual: no new hero was revealed at the event. For the first time since 2017, Valve did not use the TI stage to introduce a fresh hero, ending an eight-year run of post-finals announcements that had become a major talking point for the community.
The omission prompted visible disappointment across social channels, where many had expected the usual spectacle of a hero reveal and the discussion that follows about new abilities, lore and meta impact.
Key Points
- TI 2025 finished without a new hero reveal — the first time this has happened since 2017.
- Valve had consistently announced new heroes at The International from 2018 through 2024 (examples: Mars & Grimstroke in 2018; Snapfire & Void Spirit in 2019; Marci, Muerta, Ringmaster, Kez thereafter).
- The hero-reveal tradition became a spectacle that extended the event’s excitement and fuelled community speculation and strategy adjustments.
- Fans reacted with disappointment across social media, noting the absence as a notable gap despite the tournament’s strong gameplay and production.
- With TI 2026 announced for Shanghai, the community is left wondering whether this was a one-off omission or a sign of a change in Valve’s content rollout strategy.
Why should I read this?
Simple — if you follow Dota 2, you felt the hype vanish. This piece sums up why the lack of a hero reveal mattered more than the result: it’s about tradition, drama and what shapes the meta. We read the threads and distilled the fuss so you don’t have to.
Context and Relevance
Hero reveals at The International have become more than marketing stunts: they influence community conversation, competitive strategy and in-game balance discussion. The break in that ritual highlights how community expectations are tied to recurring event moments. For players, casters and community managers, the omission raises questions about Valve’s future communication and how new content will be introduced outside the TI spotlight.
Source
Source: https://dotesports.com/dota-2/news/dota-2-fans-disappointed-ti-2025-fails-tradition