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Dota 2: DPC 2023 Tour 2 Division I Overview – South-East Asia, China and South America 

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Dota 2: DPC 2023 Tour 2 Division I Overview – South-East Asia, China and South America 

Discussing the teams and tours from the remaining regions of the DPC

Following our analysis of the Eastern Europe, Western Europe and North American teams for 2023 DPC Tour 2 Division 1, we complete the set by slotting the remaining regions — South-East Asia, China, and South America — together. Although all three regions have fallen on relatively hard times, with the Chinese scene especially being in a state of utter turmoil at the moment, their Dota Pro Circuit tours will nevertheless contain plenty of action, and might reveal some teams which can give the current cream of the crop a run for their money. 

With Dota 2 Patch 7.32e now in full swing, the meta has shifted somewhat, and it’ll also be interesting to see how teams adapt with new strategies, or put tactical spins on old ones. The new Hero, Muerta, isn’t in Captain’s Mode yet, but enough changes have certainly taken place to spice things up in the meta department. Without further ado, then, let’s take a look at each of these three divisions.

DPC 2023 Tour 2 South-East Asia 

South-East Asia is currently the rising region in the world of Dota, with many of their teams successfully going toe-to-toe with some of the best teams around the world. The best thing about the region is the constant flow of new players that seem to enter the scene every year, with no dearth of fresh Dota talent wanting to take their career all the way. This part of the world is still extremely passionate about a game that has sort of fallen out of favor in a few other regions, and this shows in their rapid improvement. 

Teams 

Here are the South-East Asian teams for Tour 2 of the 2023 DPC:

  • Army Geniuses
  • Blacklist International 
  • Bleed Esports
  • Execration
  • Geek Slate
  • Polaris Esports
  • Talon Esports
  • Team SMG

Analysis

After their fantastic run at the Lima Major, Talon Esports are the new favorites for this group. The team has improved immensely since their subpar finish in the Winter DPC, and although things are still hotly contested, we’d tip them to be the favorites based on their recent high. Their biggest competition will most likely be Geek Slate and Blacklist International, who both did very well in the last DPC only for GS to not manage to get out of the Group Stage of the Lima Major while Blacklist was edged out of the Major slots in the last week of play.

Last DPC winner Execration doesn’t seem like the powerhouse it was then, and it’ll be interesting to see how they change up their game in the new meta. Meanwhile, Bleed Esports has made several changes to their squad, and they’ll be one of the teams to watch. Team SMG are another team that could challenge for the title, with many close matches last time that didn’t quite go their way. As for Polaris Esports and Army Geniuses, there’s plenty of potential for the two teams, but they are, for now, relatively unknown quantities in Division 1.

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DPC 2023 Tour 2 China 

What can we say about China that hasn’t already been said in the last few weeks? The once-great region has been hit by controversy and criticism, with many different teams or players from those teams having been banned by Valve themselves for taking part in unscrupulous or downright illegal activities. The most notable of these are the former team Knights, who even made it to the Lima Major off the back of their unfair methods. The region is still under strict scrutiny from the authorities, and hopefully things will get better now.

Teams 

  • Aster.Aries
  • Invictus Gaming
  • Outsiders from CN
  • PSG.LGD
  • Team Aster
  • Vici Gaming
  • Xtreme Gaming
  • Ybb Gaming

Analysis

Whether it’s a result of streaming becoming more popular than scrimming with your team in China or the massive amount of cheating and corruption within the region, the outcome remains the same. China, from once having been the only region to have three iterations of the International, is now barely an afterthought when considering the best teams in Dota 2. Even the likes of PSG.LGD and Team Aster couldn’t crack the top 6 at the Lima Major — which marks a new low for Chinese teams, and will hopefully be a wake-up call.

With many teams having been kicked out of Divisions 1 and 2, the current Division 1 has a few unknown quantities in the form of Outsiders from CN and Division 2’s Ybb Gaming. Meanwhile, Vici Gaming and Invictus Gaming both have a long and illustrious past that they’d like to build upon now that they’re back in the first division, while Aster.Aries, who showed plenty of promise last time but couldn’t manage the results, will have their shot at redemption. 

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DPC 2023 Tour 2 South America

The hopes for South America were sky-high going into the Lima Major, but unfortunately for their fans, the results didn’t quite pan out. There’s still a ton of talent in the region, but a combination of complex reasons and perhaps a dash of impulsiveness and an aversion towards adhering  to some fundamentals of the game tend to cause them to capitulate during crucial matches. If teams from the region can patch up this side of them, we will surely be in for some South American glory.

Teams 

  • Alliance.LATAM
  • beastcoast
  • Evil Geniuses
  • Infinity
  • Keyd Stars
  • No Runes
  • Qhali
  • Thunder Awaken

Analysis

With beastcoast and Evil Geniuses still looking like the top contenders, it might take a while before another team surpasses them, but the recent change in meta could mean a change in the fortunes of the teams. Alliance.LATAM looked good last tour, as did Infinity, Keyd Stars and Thunder Awaken. These teams deserve to have an eye on them on account of their previous performances, and a surprise here or there wouldn’t, in fact, surprise us.

The two new teams, No Runes and Qhali, aren’t exactly expected to top the charts, but they themselves might cause some upsets against the mid table teams. Overall, the SA region has tremendous potential, and with the region having experienced their first ever local Major, things might ramp up and more sponsors could take note. More money almost always means a better scene, so if you’re in the region or are a fan of it, cross your fingers.

We’ll be providing weekly recaps for each division, so make sure you don’t miss them. Also, check out our wide variety of other Dota 2 content.