This may just be Dota 2‘s most exciting year yet. The game is expanding into China and South Korea later this year and this year’s The International boasts the largest prize pool in eSports history, having passed the $2 million mark last month.
Dota 2 reached the Chinese market for the first time earlier this year as a beta, under publisher Perfect World Entertainment. Nexon is handling publishing in South Korea, where they can either log into the client directly or via Steam.
While Dota 2 will undoubtedly have an easier time in China due to the large DotA fanbase in the region, but breaking into the South Korean market will be more difficult. League of Legends, StarCraft 2, and a variety of MMOs are kings in the region.
In order to encourage the game’s growth in Korea, Nexon will be starting up the Nexon Starter League and will be investing $1.63 million USD into the game’s future as an eSport in the country.
Dota 2 will be seeing its Korean release in Autumn, sometime after this August’s The International tournament.
