Valve shocks Dota 2 world with Patch 7.33b just hours before Berlin Major

As if dropping the biggest Dota 2 patch in recent memory during a big tournament last week wasn’t enough, Valve has now released Patch 7.33b just hours before matches begin for the Dota Pro Circuit’s Berlin Major on April 25.

The bulk of this surprise Dota 2 update, which is live on servers now, focuses on stat adjustments based on data and feedback pulled from the last seven days, with some heroes that were showing early signs of dominating the meta being toned back alongside a few of the newer mechanics added with the expanded map.

For anyone who was playing pubs, or looking at usage rates over the last week, it will come as no surprise to see Riki, Phantom Lancer, Silencer, and Void Spirit all being hit at least a little. Riki is taking the brunt of the damage with nerfs to Smoke Screen, Blink Strike, and Cloak and Dagger. 

Other top usage heroes in ranked like Dark Seer, Alchemist, Chen, and Legion Commander also got some slight adjustments to Talents and a few moves to bring their power level down. Even Pangolier and Bristleback got decent changes, though theirs’ were mostly positive despite the heroes’ popularity. 

Related: Arteezy says Dota 2’s new patch is throwback to what game used to be

Clinkz was already a big winner from 7.33 last week with all of the positive reworks the hero received, but more buffs hit the hero in this smaller update that might pull it out of the MMR gutter, and that applies to Broodmother too. 

One of the biggest sets of Dota buffs came for Medusa, who got boosted damage for Split Shot, increased gain from Mystic Snake, and a useful update to Mana Shield that now applies it to the hero’s Illusions.

As for the rest of the patch, a few updates to the map apply an additional second to use the Twin Gates for cross-map travel and some changes to the Tormentors. There are also a number of adjustments for Neutral Creeps and items too, pairing with various bug fixes that have been released over the last several days.

While the size of this patch is manageable, the fact it was released less than a week after 7.33 and while most pros competing at the Major are resting is where concerns begin. And it raises even more eyebrows when you look at some DPC Division II matches having to use the new patch right after it went live too.

There are plenty of fans on the other side of the fence too who think this will spice up pro games even more once the Dota 2 Major matches begin on April 26.