Valve promises to deliver Dota 2 Arcanas, among other updates, after TI12 concludes.
The Dota 2 The International 12 (TI12) Compendium arrived early this morning with a plethora of rewards and new challenges. But the community quickly spotted the absence of the beloved shiny hats - Dota 2 Arcanas and cosmetics - in the Compendium.
The community had a sour response to no cosmetics, understandably. But fret not, Valve promises the release of Dota 2 Arcanas (and possibly more) right after TI12 ends.
Valve plans to release Dota 2 Arcanas "after the champions claim the Aegis"
Valve dropped the Compendium today with mainly "event-focused features and event-focused rewards". This also sees no hero cosmetics such as Immortals and Arcanas in the Compendium.
In the latest news entry, Valve highlighted that the team is working on future updates including the next set of Arcanas. However, these are for AFTER TI12 concludes.
"We're already working on future updates with different focuses and we know you're excited to learn more about the next big patch, and the next set of arcanas, and everything else we're working on - but that's for after the champions claim the Aegis," the post stated.
(Screenshot from Dota 2 news entry)
This means that Valve plans to release more "Battle Pass-like" content such as hero Immortals and Arcanas after TI12 concludes. This would be after October 29th, which is the Grand Final date for TI12.
This may be disappointing for players who love shiny hats. But Valve had also hinted this in the "Learning from the Past, Looking to the Future" news entry in June. In the post, Valve broke down its plans for Dota 2 updates. It mentioned that this TI update will focus more on the event and less on the cosmetics.
Leaks point toward future cosmetics
While the Compendium holds no cosmetics, it is apparent that Valve plans to release them more consistently in the future without the "time constraints of the Battle Pass". Players may keep their hopes up with the recent leaks as well. There are a bunch of cosmetics and new features in the Dota database including a Skywrath Mage and Vengeful Spirit Arcana.
Stay tuned to esports.gg for more Dota 2 news and updates.