Multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games have been a staple of PC gaming since their inception. The debate of League of Legends vs. Dota 2 started as soon as gamers were able to play both games.
At their core, League of Legends and Dota 2 share the same origin. Both games are based on the Warcraft 3 mod DotA Allstars, which in turn was inspired by a Starcraft mod called Aeons of Strife. The creators of Dota Allstars basically split into two sides. One side worked from the company Riot Games, eventually creating League of Legends, while the other received an offer from Valve to develop Dota 2.
Fundamentally, Dota 2 and League of Legends share many similarities, mostly because both games defined the MOBA genre. Both Dota 2 and League of Legends share a lot of stuff in common. After all, they both belong to the MOBA genre and have the same inspirations behind their conceptions.
Content
League of Legends has the advantage of having a quicker rate of release with new champions and skins often. Nonetheless, Dota 2 has a lot more life-improvement content such as cursor customization, abilities, weather and terrain effects, arcade mode, and a lot more.
Another difference in terms of content is the items available for each game. Dota 2 has several items that offer a wide variety of different effects, like turning yourself invisible or shooting energy blasts. Meanwhile, League of Legends’ items are more simplistic in nature, usually offering stats upgrades.
Lore
In terms of lore, League of Legends is the most consistent of the two. Since Dota 2 and League of Legends were created as knockoffs of the Warcraft universe, the stories of both games had to deviate a bit to stand out. That is something that Riot Games understood from the beginning. The creators of LoL have fleshed out Runeterra with a variety of outlets such as comics, trailers, and side stories. Meanwhile, Dota 2 feels a bit more disjointed in terms of lore and how the characters connect with each other, to the point where some of them feel convoluted. In this case, the League of Legends story is overall more cohesive and easier to dive into.
Graphics and Style
Even though they’re similar, the graphics on both games differ greatly when compared side by side. League of Legends does have the advantage of looking a bit sharper, with more cartoonish and colorful graphics, which might be a turn-off for some players. Dota 2, however, has a more serious tone, with a darker color palette and more grim designs. Which one you think is better comes down to preference.
Gameplay
At first glance, the gameplay feels faster in LoL, mainly because the animations are swift, more fluid, and flamboyant compared to the animations in Dota 2. But, in truth, the average match of Dota 2 tends to be quicker than a League match. Of course, the length of each game depends mainly on the players on the field.
While it is true that Dota 2 has more planning behind each move, and there’s more punishment for every mistake you make, Dota 2 encourages players to be more aggressive than League of Legends. Overall, once you get the hang of things, the speeds of the games are not that different from each other.
All in all, the flashy nature of LoL combat makes it seem like the game is more fast-paced. However, depending on the match, Dota 2 matches often tend to be shorter.
One glaring feature that separates the two gameplay-wise is friendly fire. In Dota 2, you can hit and kill your allies (hopefully on accident). In comparison, LoL does not have that feature. It may not seem like a big deal at first, but it actually plays a significant role in both games’ difficulty, especially early on.
In Dota 2, you can deny your enemy the opportunity of earning Gold by killing one of your own Creeps (or Minions in League). You can also mercy-kill your teammates when affected by negative effects, such as poison, for the same reason. And can be done to Towers (or Turrets) when they’re about to be destroyed. This adds a layer of dynamics between enemies and allies that League of Legends simply does not have.
The environment also plays a more prominent role in Dota 2 than in League of Legends. Dota 2 allows you to have the higher ground, some Heroes are going to be more efficient either in daytime or nighttime, and you’re able to interact with trees and the like. In League, the only environmental action you can do is to hide in bushes for an ambush.
Of course, there are many more mechanics and minor tweaks that differ in both games, but to name them all here would be an entire article by itself.
Customization
When it comes to customization, it’s important to note just how much each game allows you to customize the look of the characters you play. Dota 2 allows a more personalized look since it allows you to change each part of your Hero’s gear, like their headgear, armguards, or cloak.
League of Legends’ skins come as a one-piece suit. And while there are plenty of awesome skins for LoL’s champions, the advantage here goes to DOTA 2.
Accessibility
The elephant in the room when it comes to comparing these two MOBA games is accessibility. The truth is League of Legends is way more accessible to the general public. LoL is more straightforward with a lot of its mechanics, and it’s often easier to get into for casual players. DOTA 2 is more strategic, with a steep learning curve that can take hundreds of hours to master or even get decent at it.
The creators of League of Legends, Riot Games, went for the minimalistic route. The core mechanics in LoL are simple enough for casual players to get into with little effort. Meanwhile, Dota 2 developers, Valve, remained true to their initial idea, staying close to the original Dota mod.
Paywall
Microtransactions are such a heavily debated topic to this day that it’s hard to find two gamers with similar outlooks. Microtransactions in Dota 2 are purely cosmetic. You can choose different cosmetics for the Heroes, along with a larger variety of sound effects, maps, voice lines, and animations. Since you can choose to play with any Hero from the get-go, it’s easy to see why people might prefer this model since it’s not as constrictive in gameplay.
League of Legends’ paywall is a bit more pronounced. In LoL, some Champions, skins, and even abilities are locked behind paywalls, not to mention that there’s a limited number of Champions to choose from. While some of the rest can be acquired for free, most of them have to be paid for. Contrast this with Dota 2, where all the Heroes are at your disposal from the very beginning.
Some players might feel put off by the limit of available Champions in League of Legends, but it can be used to your advantage. You see, by technically being forced to play with a few Champions for an extended period, you’re able to specialize. This allows you to get familiar with one or a few Champions, along with their abilities and play styles.
While Dota 2 provides a lot of flexibility, this can come at the cost of not finding a Hero you feel comfortable playing until you’re hours deep into the game, which is one of the few reasons why Dota 2 can be intimidating for you players new to the MOBA scene.
Heroes vs. Champions
League is a bit more restrictive when it comes to team roles because there are only a few ways to dominate the arena effectively. Logic dictates that the team should split between the lanes.
Preferably, a tank or heavy-hitter duelist on the top lade, a mage or assassin in the mid lane, a support and Attack Damage Carry (ACD) that are focused on continuous damage attacks and scaling attack-based stats in the bottom lane, and a Champion designated to roam the map engaging in smaller fights, also nicknamed Junglers. The way the team splits between the lanes may change depending on how the game changes, but in order to claim victory, it is necessary to have some of these roles fulfilled.
Dota 2 has the advantage of flexibility when it comes to roles and builds. The Heroes you choose can perfectly complement the ones on your team even if you fulfill similar functions, such as support. Their categories, Strength, Agility, and Intelligence, are the baseline of what your character’s role is going to be and can work in synergy with the equipment you use.
Community
League of Legends has a larger overall community compared to Dota 2. While it is easier to learn the ropes in LoL, new players might feel intimidated by more experienced players, especially if matches are lost. And when that happens, expect some explicit language coming your way regardless of who’s to blame.
Dota 2’s community has a more forgiving reputation. That’s not to say Dota 2 is full of angels. There still will be trolls and rage-quitters like any other multiplayer game. Not to mention that the cult-like following Dota 2 has earned, along with its learning curve, create the perfect recipe for gate-keeping gamers to flourish.
Dota 2 currently has over 11 Million players worldwide. Meanwhile, League of Legends boasts around 110 million players. LoL is clearly the most popular candidate of the two. This can be attributed to League of Legends’ accessibility.
Since both games are pioneers of the MOBA genre, it’s easy to get lost in favoritism when comparing Dota 2 vs. League. So, truly it is impossible to say that one is better than the other without any bias. The truth is that both games have their merits. The weight of their pros and cons is something that you’ll have to figure out yourself by playing them to see which one you prefer. At the end of the day, League of Legends is the biggest MOBA with a steadily increasing playerbase, and Dota 2 remains the original MOBA that started it all.
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