Valve announces Dota 2

Last night Valve officially announced Dota 2, sequel of sorts to the extremely popular Warcraft III mod Dota (Defense of the Ancients).

Dota 2 is more or less a remake of Dota Allstars that includes all characters and a near identical game design. It will make use of an updated Source engine that has been equipped with a new lighting system, and improved cloth physics.

A new version of Steamworks will be released in conjunction with Dota 2, and there will be opportunities for rewards if your a part of the community outside of the game. There will be a coach mode for truly gifted players who can assist others through video and voice communication. For those who don't want to face the stiff online competition there will be the option of facing bots, while there will not be any single player campaign. Dota 2 will be released next year on PC and Mac.