Professional Dota 2 players Tal `Fly` Aizik, Magomed `Collapse` Khalilov, and Nikita `Panto` Balaganin recently voiced their frustrations concerning the current state of the game following the release of patch 7.38c. Their comments were shared in a video on social media.
Fly specifically highlighted his weariness with the hero pool for his role:
What I dislike most about this patch is that in every match, carries ask me to play Jakiro. It`s boring, guys, I`m tired of playing Jakiro. Give me Phoenix, maybe Chen, but no, Fly, you need to play Jakiro, just play Jakiro.
Collapse expressed a particularly strong negative opinion about one hero dominating the meta:
The most disgusting thing in this patch is Jakiro. Honestly, I hate this hero. I want him nerfed into the ground or just removed from the game.
Panto detailed the lack of hero diversity for support players as his primary issue with the patch:
He stated that his biggest problem is being restricted to playing only 3-4 heroes. According to Panto, ranked matches often begin with key bans on heroes like Ancient Apparition and Tinker, leaving Ringmaster or Jakiro as the main viable options. He stressed that players must pick these heroes quickly; otherwise, the opposing team will pick them and effectively dominate both lanes, making the game significantly harder to contest.
Panto explained that if he chooses to play a hero outside this narrow meta, such as Bane, he frequently finds himself against opponents who did pick Ringmaster or Jakiro, leading to a very challenging match. He conveyed a strong desire for a new patch, explaining that he dislikes metas with an abundance of overpowered position 5 supports because it severely limits hero choice and forces players onto specific heroes. He prefers patches where dominant supports are less prevalent, allowing players more freedom to pick a wider variety of heroes without facing criticism for not sticking to the meta.
Finley Holt