Smurf Account Bans and Bugs Following Frostivus Update
On December 19, Valve introduced a pre-New Year update for Dota 2 called “Frostivus”. Players gained access to the Winter 2024 Heroes' Hoard treasure, featuring exclusive cosmetic items. However, the highlight of this update was Valve's decision to ban tens of thousands of smurf accounts.
"Sixty-five thousand smurf accounts, along with some griefers, have been banned. It’s time to enjoy Dota again," commented caster Austin "Capitalist" Walsh, expressing his approval of the move.
Despite this significant action, the new update also introduced some issues. Luka "Lukawa" Nasuashvili, the manager of BetBoom Team, and e-sports player Roman "RAMZES666" Kushnarev shared their thoughts on “Frostivus”.
"We're creating exclusive cosmetics for you to purchase, and we're reintroducing previously exclusive items for you to buy," Nasuashvili pointed out on social media.
RAMZES666 had a succinct yet impactful reaction, simply stating, "Nice patch," accompanied by a clown emoticon.
Players were eagerly anticipating the full patch 7.38 and the accompanying event that would alter the current meta. However, the update was primarily focused on holiday-themed content, along with some bugs.
Teleportation Issues Affecting Abilities and Items
The holiday-themed update came with an unexpected surprise—a bug that caused several items and abilities to malfunction during teleportation.
Team Spirit analyst Denis "sikle" Lerman addressed the issue, noting, "When using the Town Portal Scroll, instant items like Shadow Blade, Silver Edge, Shiva's Guard, Phase Boots, Radiance, and others fail to activate. Some heroes, like Invoker, also lose access to their abilities."
Additionally, the "dragons" analyst highlighted a quirky interaction with Aghanim's Scepter, where heroes can "steal hats" within a 400-unit radius instead of the usual one target.
Valve has yet to respond to this bug, but players are hopeful for a swift resolution.
The "Frostivus" update has elicited mixed reactions, ranging from excitement over the ban of smurf accounts to disappointment regarding the absence of the long-awaited patch. The new bug has added to the community's frustration, and players are eagerly looking for further developments from Valve.