It’s not common for a game maker to fight against some of its players, but that’s exactly what Valve just did.
Also Read: The Factors that Make Dota 2 a Competitive Game
In a recent Dota 2 blog post titled “Smurfing is Not Welcome in Dota,” Valve announced that they permanently banned 90,000 smurf accounts. They promised to take even stronger actions against those who don’t play the game fairly. To stop smurfs from returning to their old tricks, Valve also kept an eye on the main accounts of these banned users.
In the future, if an account is caught smurfing, all linked accounts will face penalties, ranging from temporary changes in their behavior score to permanent bans.
Valve stated, “Dota is most enjoyable when everyone participates fairly”. The quality of the people in a match makes it good. We want to make sure your matches are as good as possible, and smurfing ruins the experience.”
After this announcement, smurfing players who were affected complained about their bans on community forums. However, Valve’s detection tools are usually accurate, so these bans are likely to stay.
Since the beginning of 2023, Valve has been taking steps to make sure each Dota 2 match is fair. They started by banning over 40,000 cheaters in February, and now they are dealing with Smurfs.
Earlier this week, Valve also released a Summer Client Update that made it easier for players to report problems and give feedback in the game. Players now have more reporting options and tools to make their ranked Dota 2 games better.
Valve’s recent move against certain players in their game, Dota 2, is unusual but significant. They permanently banned 90,000 smurf accounts and warned of even stricter measures for those who don’t play fairly. Valve is now tracking the main accounts of these banned players to prevent them from returning to smurfing.
In the future, any account caught smurfing will face penalties, from temporary behavior score changes to permanent bans.
Valve is committed to ensuring fair Dota 2 matches, having already banned 40,000 cheaters earlier this year. They also introduced a Summer Client Update to enhance the reporting and feedback process for players, making ranked games more enjoyable.
