Valve is back at it with a new documentary series, True Sight. This is a follow-up to 2014’s Free To Play, which followed the journeys of hyhy, Fear, and Dendi.
Here’s the link to Valve’s blog post about True Sight.
True Sight, A Valve Series, Quick Facts:
- Premiers Thursday, October 13th for Battle Pass owners. Players with Battle Passes are invited to participate in a live chat during the screening.
- Available to all Battle Pass owners through Steam after 4pm PDT on Friday the 14th of October.
- Covers Evil Geniuses and Fnatic’s challenges post-TI6 and pre-Boston Major. Both teams are rebuilding their rosters.
Free To Play, A Valve Documentary, Quick Facts:
- Premiered in 2014, so some of the info (The International’s Prize Pool, for example) is a little out of date.
- Follows Fear, hyhy, and Dendi specifically.
- Available for free on Youtube
- Pre-TI4 era
So which Valve documentary should you watch? I’ve recommended Free to Play to several non-esports fans. It’s pretty accessible – Valve did a great job explaining the basics of gameplay. The story is about the players and their individual struggles to gain a foothold in a brand new type of sport. But, Fear just retired and hyhy hasn’t been playing on the main stage for a while. Dendi is still Dendi, though.
It’s certainly appealing, but as it’s two years out of date a lot has changed. Dota’s popping up on the radar for mainstream sports sites. NPR has covered The International at least twice. A Dota play landed on ESPN’s “Plays of the Night” segment back in April. Dota is a thing now.
For these reasons, I’d suggest checking out True Sight if you’re new to the game but enjoy sports in general. The focus is going to be on team building and training to win. A general sports fan will identify with this (c’mon, it’s like every sports documentary ever). Even if you or your friend is not actually into Dota, the mechanism behind team development and training strategy is applicable across all sports. Show it to your friend who loves Miracle or The Mighty Ducks. If you’re hooked, check out Free to Play later for a look back into the rich history of Dota.