Valve disappointed many Dota 2 fans with their announcement that they would be canceling the first Major of the season.
There is no doubt that the various strains of the Covid virus have made it very difficult for tournament organizers to proceed with LAN events across the esports landscape. There have been cases of professional tournament players being stuck in the countries they traveled to after contracting even mild symptoms of the virus. Hikaru Nakamura, a high-ranking chess Grandmaster for TSM, was barred from leaving Poland after participating in the World Rapid and Blitz Championships last month. He was quarantined after testing positive for Covid and had to remain in Poland for a few weeks after the conclusion of the tournament.
Yet, the Dota 2 cancellation hits especially hard for Dota 2 professionals and esports organizations. The players and teams generally rely on the Majors for most of their annual revenues. Dota 2 players and fans took to social media and were very vocal about their opposition to the cancellation. However, the decision seems to be final. Here is the announcement:
As the Winter Tour of the Dota Pro Circuit 2021-2022 season draws to a close, we’ve made the difficult decision to cancel the first Major. While hopes were high that we could host an international LAN event, the discovery and spread of new strains of COVID-19 and the resulting increase of travel restrictions has made it unfeasible for all qualified teams to gather for a LAN tournament.
As there will be no major, Tour 1 will conclude after all of the regional league tournaments have ended. Players who have participated in Fantasy will receive their rewards before the start of Tour 2.
Teams participating in the DPC earn points by playing in their respective Regional Leagues as well as through international competition at the Majors. Since the first Major is no longer happening, we have decided to redistribute its points to the second and third Major. This way, the balance of points between regional and cross-region play remains the same. The points will be distributed as follows:
Major 2:
1st Place – 680 Points
2nd Place – 610 Points
3rd Place – 530 Points
4th Place – 460 Points
5th/6th Place – 385 Points
7th/8th Place – 240 Points
Major 3:
1st Place – 820 Points
2nd Place – 740 Points
3rd Place – 670 Points
4th Place – 590 Points
5th/6th Place – 515 Points
7th/8th Place – 360 Points
We will continue to evaluate the situation regarding international travel for future Majors as we progress through the second Tour.
