MOBA noobness: is Dota 2 or League of Legends better for a new player?

There is a fierce, eternal debate amongst MOBA game fans that has yet to be settled. Is Dota 2 or League of Legends the better game? While we cannot weigh in on that, nor change pious and resolute minds, we can tell you which is the better MOBA for a new player to get into.

The answer might surprise you.

On one hand, we’ve got Dota 2. It is a fine MOBA distilled from a vintage wrought in the fires of Blizzard Entertainment’s custom game underbelly. It’s got class and history, and a full pantheon of heroes with years of thought and balance put into them. Dota 2 has 107 heroes and one standard map, with special events held periodically through the year.

(See: MOBA Madness: a blast to the Warcraft III Dota maps past)

Dota 2 has its own standalone client and is easily downloadable for free from Steam. It has dedicated servers for China and Southeast Asia, albeit a single one for the entire SEA region that lags and is sometimes close to unusable during special events. Training maps, games with bots, and games with real people are available. There is also a coaching mode where you can hop in-game with a friend to get bossed around as you learn to play. All of Dota 2’s 107 heroes are available for use the minute you boot up the game.

On the other hand, we’ve got League of Legends (LoL). Riot Games’ free-to-play MOBA offering burst onto the scene in 2009, just as MOBA games started to climb in popularity, and it has not left. Unlike Dota 2’s muted tones, LoL is bright and cheerful, and is visually very cartoonish. Worth noting is also League of Legends’ less demanding requirements; it loads better on the poorer internet connections most of Southeast Asia experiences.

The game is relatively young, but there’s a ton of content in LoL. League of Legends has four maps with different meta games, and 119 heroes available for play, though you only get access to 10 as a new player. League of Legends has a slightly different meta game compared to Dota 2, but honestly, that does not matter to the newbie, because when you have experience with neither game, you’re not going to be able to compare.

Now that we’ve explored the basics of both games, here’s the verdict. Bear in mind I grew up playing Dota like most Asian gamers, but have not touched the game since it was still on the Warcraft III client in 2006.

Dota 2 is definitely the premium game

As mentioned earlier, Dota 2 is pretty classy. Unlike League, it manages to go the freemium route without denying new players any portion of the game. All heroes are available to the new player. Dota 2 also has a very good user interface and various modes to aid the serious player (coach, spectator). However, Dota 2 is also tougher and less user-friendly.

(See: MOBA mashup: who would win, LoL’s Ashe or Dota 2’s Drow Ranger?)