TI14 is upon us, but fans looking forward to another TI Battle Pass are going to be disappointed yet again.
The International was long the centerpiece of everything related to Dota 2. While that’s to be expected for the esports scene, it’s been the case for casual Dota 2 players as well. That’s because most of Dota 2’s major content drops have been attached to The International Battle Pass.
At the peak of its popularity, players could get up to five high-quality, limited-edition skins for some of the game’s most popular characters. But in recent years, that’s changed. So what happened to the TI Battle Pass, and what’s on offer to players these days?
There is no TI14 battle pass for The International 2025.
Valve effectively dropped its support of the Dota 2 esports scene in 2023 beyond continued work towards organizing The International. While the scene was once heavily structured around the Dota Pro Circuit and a strong majority of the money available to pro players was funneled directly into The International, Valve nixed that ahead of The International 2023. This resulted in a precipitous drop in the event’s prize pool, which resulted in that prize pool dropping from $40 million in 2021 to $18.9 million in 2022, and even more steeply down to $3.4 million in 2023.
The explanation given by Valve was that The International Battle Pass had come to absorb all the development resources for Dota 2 throughout the entire year. The initial indication was that dropping the TI Battle Pass would free up developers to deliver in-game events more frequently. Through the end of 2025, that hasn’t exactly proven true, as the company has failed to produce content equitable to what was once delivered each year with the TI Battle Pass.
Valve has replaced The International Battle Pass with a considerably leaner offering for casual players.
Instead of a battle pass, all players in 2025 are given the opportunity to take part in TI14 through in-game predictions and a fantasy mini-game. These work similarly to those seen in the TI Compendium and previous The International Battle Passes. The predictions and fantasy mini-game are not locked behind a paywall of any kind, allowing all players to try their luck at will and without making any financial commitment.
Unlike in previous years, there is no progression system that offers increased rewards. Players earn points based on their predictions and fantasy roster. These points are used to unlock special immortal items and Dota+ Shards. Players who rank in the top 15% of players during the event can unlock extra potential items including arcana skins.
The commemorative framed Aegis of Champions will also be available for The International 2025, but is purchased directly for $150. The top 5% of players get a 50% off coupon for the Aegis, while the 1,500 highest-scoring players will get one for free.
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