The Riyadh Masters 2025 Dota 2 tournament, a centerpiece of the Esports World Cup, is now on the cusp of its grand finale. For those who might have decided to `sleep in` through the initial group stage phase, effectively skipping a large portion of the matches, the tournament is entering its high-stakes final act. Before diving into the remaining few games, let`s recap some of the most interesting moments and facts that defined the group stage journey.
The Playoff Gauntlet: A Rare Single-Elimination Challenge
The primary reason for the limited number of matches remaining is the playoff format itself. The organizers have opted for a single-elimination bracket – a structure notably uncommon in major Dota 2 tournaments of this caliber. While variations have appeared in more experimental events recently, a true classical single-elimination bracket, where all teams start from the same round on equal footing, hasn`t been a staple in official large-scale events since the Kyiv Major in 2017. The first Riyadh Masters in 2022 did feature single-elimination, but on a smaller scale with fewer teams. This format guarantees intense, do-or-die matches from the outset, a significant departure from the more common double-elimination structure seen in Majors and The International.
Beyond the Meta: Unexpected Hero Picks
One genuinely refreshing aspect of Riyadh Masters 2025 has been the diversity in hero picks. The championship has seen the return of several characters that many players might have forgotten were even in the game. Even more surprising were the successful attempts at utilizing heroes in unconventional core roles. Pure~`s carry Hoodwink and Niku`s midlane Undying stand out as particularly bold experiments. These are picks typically reserved for casual matchmaking rather than the cutthroat professional scene. Yet, in both cases, these highly unusual hero choices secured wins against formidable opponents like Falcons and Xtreme, respectively. The tournament has certainly kept analysts and fans on their toes with its hero pool.
Stats That Raise Eyebrows
Individual statistics often reveal interesting stories, and Riyadh Masters 2025 provided a few peculiar ones. Tundra Esports successfully navigated their group, despite a tiebreaker setback. Curiously, Tundra`s carry, Crystallis, achieved a noteworthy anti-record: he finished the laning phase with the lowest average creep score (CS) among all core players at the event. Averaging just 47 creeps by the ten-minute mark, he was significantly behind most core players who typically reach over 60 CS, and even 10 creeps fewer than the next lowest player, Daxak. This stat is particularly amusing considering Tundra`s relatively high win rate in the groups.
The Phantom Lancer Predicament
Remember those childhood dares, like licking a frozen pole? A similar, equally perilous challenge seemed to emerge for carry players at the Riyadh Masters: picking Phantom Lancer. The task was simple: pick the hero and try to win. So far, only Nightfall has successfully `unfrozen` himself. Players like Pure~, Ame, Satanic, and Timado all found themselves stuck, with Ame and Satanic attempting the feat twice. Consequently, Phantom Lancer ended the first two stages with a dismal 14% win rate, one of the tournament`s worst hero performances, with an average KDA more typically associated with a support.
Trash Talk and Dominance: Liquid vs. PARIVISION
Team Liquid showed strong form in the initial stage, topping their group with minimal losses. However, their series against PARIVISION garnered particular attention due to the post-match interview with SabeRLighT-. Following a history where PARIVISION`s support, Dukalis, had previously called SabeRLighT- a “bot” (a tag that stuck despite Liquid having swept them 3-0 in a prior grand final), Liquid extended their map record against PARIVISION to a dominant 7-0 at Riyadh Masters. SabeRLighT- hilariously acknowledged the ongoing `bot` narrative in the interview, expressing his hope to meet PARIVISION again in the playoffs to push the score to 9-0. A classic moment of esports rivalry and playful banter.
Virtus.pro`s Difficult Run
At the other end of the competitive spectrum, Virtus.pro, led by Daxak, unfortunately etched their name into the tournament`s records by being the only team not to secure a single map win, finishing with an 0-8 record. Their struggles were sometimes highlighted by remarkably low kill counts; in a two-map series against Team Yandex, the team managed a total of only 12 kills. While one game against Aurora showed brief promise with a Huskar pick, securing 19 kills and Roshan, the overall performance was consistently challenged.
Within the VP squad, support player Antares also recorded an unusually low statistic: an average KDA of less than one. This is quite rare in Dota 2, even for supports, where assists are common. Achieving less than one total kill or assist per death on average is, frankly, an unenviable achievement.
Broadcasting Blips
While many recent Dota 2 events have been technically smooth, Riyadh Masters 2025 seemed intent on revisiting some classic esports broadcast challenges. Although mercifully free of lengthy game pauses, the streams were affected by frequent sound and video disruptions on both English and Russian broadcasts. The Russian stream notably experienced a period where commentators first lost video, forcing them to cast blind, before their microphones also cut out. Adding to the auditory landscape was significant audio bleed from neighboring Esports World Cup events, particularly Valorant matches, whose enthusiastic shouts were audible through the Dota 2 caster mics. The most notable Dota 2 player audio moment, the “Bots!” call, was fortunately captured on the on-site English stream.
***
The first stage of Riyadh Masters 2025 delivered a mix of standard high-level competition and some truly unique moments, stats, and technical quirks. With the tournament now shifting to the unforgiving single-elimination format, the intensity is guaranteed to reach new heights. We await to see if the playoffs will bring even more memorable stories and, hopefully, fewer unfortunate records.
Gilbert Pendleton 
Wesley Dunham