On the first day of the The International 11 (TI11) playoffs in Singapore, Ulti Asia went down to Suntec Convention Centre to get a closer look at the worldwide Dota championship in our own backyard.
And for all the criticism of how the TI was handled, there was still a palpable buzz in the air when we checked the scene out at the playoff stage.
Dozens of people from all around the world milled about outside the halls where the Playoffs were taking place. The atmosphere was abuzz with excitement and even from outside the halls, muted cries of spectators echoed.
Talking to hardcore fans from Australia, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, China and Brazil, we learnt that many of them have been gaming for 12 to 15 years. Some of them had even played the first Dota before the sequel was released.
Kenan Crinis, a 25-year-old, came from Australia with his family and friends, just to watch TI in person. Dota has been a huge part of his life for as long as he could remember. He said: “I’ve been gaming for most of my life, since I was a kid. I played Warcraft 3 which was the original game Dota 1 started from and when Dota 2 came out, I kept playing.”
Being the inaugural TI held in Southeast Asia, many Southeast Asians were finally able to take the opportunity to attend.
Harris Nazmi, 24, said: “I’m from Malaysia so this is close by. If I wanted to go to Europe, it would be very pricey so I might as well spend my money to come here.”
However, it was not all sunshine and rainbows for these diehard Dota fans. The Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre ended up being too small a venue. Only occupying two halls, it was clear that there were not enough tickets.
Outside the halls stood dozens of anxious fans who were not able to get tickets, many of them having come from overseas. They stood there with desperate expressions on their faces, holding up signs asking for people to sell their tickets to them so they could watch the matches live. However, many left disappointed.
Kevin Estaris, 34, who came from the Philippines just for TI11, was one of those people. When asked about how he felt about not being able to get tickets, he said that he felt like he was “going to cry” and was “disappointed”.
Vic Wong, a 23-year-old Chinese national who travelled to Singapore from the United Kingdom, shared similar sentiments, saying: “It’s quite heartbreaking and sad. It’s regrettable. I should have bought tickets.”
However, the blame should not be solely on the organisers and the venue. Andri, 28, shared his frustrations that “there are so many scalpers who sell tickets on Carousell for triple the original price,” making it difficult for fans to acquire them.
Those without tickets were not alone in their frustration. Even inside the halls, there were several complaints from spectators. It is easy to see why viewers who paid hundreds of dollars for tickets were unhappy.
Ming Huynh, a 28-year-old from Vietnam, mentioned that the setup of the halls was not ideal, saying: “The seating is too low so I was only able to see the back of people’s heads. At other matches that I’ve been to before, the seating was higher so I could easily see the screen.”
Many others took to social media to air out their complaints. Even online watchers were unhappy with the way the event was managed.
At the end of the day, TI is all about the game, rooting for your favourite teams. From everyone we talked to, no team was more highly-predicted to win than PSG.LGD. The Chinese team, however, fell to Team Aster in their Lower Bracket run, disappointing many who had turned up to support them.
It just goes to show, even after eleven years, those who have known Dota their whole lives can still be surprised by what goes on at The International.
