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While the intended launch window for the Source 2 version of Dota 2 of "Spring 2015" has now long since passed, a game update released earlier this evening revealed a small, yet important, piece of new information. As shown here by SteamDB's GameTracking page over on Github, the update introduced two new (currently unused) lines of code, listed below.
For a highly competitive game such as Dota 2, we feel it's very important for the game's balance, stability, and performance to remain as consistent as possible in order to not unfairly affect the player experience. Briefly splitting the game onto two clients (such as with the current "Normal" and "Test" clients) is an excellent idea on paper which would allow Valve to continually iterate and improve the Source 2 version without hampering the experience of those players who couldn't care less about the upgrade or those which would rather focus on Ranked matches or competitive play on the older engine.
However, we feel it's important to stress the need to dissolve the two clients once the Source 2 variant is up and running as optimally as possible, as splitting the community down the middle across two clients could prove disastrous, much the same way the Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 communities were permanently fractured several years ago. That said, it's still an interesting development, and we'll be sure to let you know if and when we learn more about the future of Dota 2 and the Source 2 engine.
These lines, once fully implemented, suggest that Dota 2's upgrade to the Source 2 engine will not take place as one fell swoop, with Valve instead staggering the release on a separate game client while the older Source 1 variant continues to operate normally as it does today. The lines in question will likely appear on a player's information tab and on their profile, allowing players to easily identify and distinguish who among their friends is playing on the same version of the game client as them and can therefore be partied up with.
For a highly competitive game such as Dota 2, we feel it's very important for the game's balance, stability, and performance to remain as consistent as possible in order to not unfairly affect the player experience. Briefly splitting the game onto two clients (such as with the current "Normal" and "Test" clients) is an excellent idea on paper which would allow Valve to continually iterate and improve the Source 2 version without hampering the experience of those players who couldn't care less about the upgrade or those which would rather focus on Ranked matches or competitive play on the older engine.
However, we feel it's important to stress the need to dissolve the two clients once the Source 2 variant is up and running as optimally as possible, as splitting the community down the middle across two clients could prove disastrous, much the same way the Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2 communities were permanently fractured several years ago. That said, it's still an interesting development, and we'll be sure to let you know if and when we learn more about the future of Dota 2 and the Source 2 engine.
