The Shanghai Major 2016 – Team Ratings

It has been a busy year for the esports world of Dota 2. The abundance of roster changes and star players emerging has made it quite a build up towards The International 6. The Shanghai Major is the second major event to occur since last year’s The International 5. It also is a prime opportunity to observe the new teams after an extended break and giving them time to improve their synergy.

The majority of the teams and players did not come as a surprise. But, some of the team and player performances, for better or worse, were unexpected. Before I start talking about team performances and the results from the Shanghai Major, let’s have a look at the overall stats for each team and then we can begin to break things down.

Performed As Expected: Evil Geniuses

I think that no one is surprised at the performance of EG. These guys are always ready to perform and to compete. We’ll talk about Manila in an upcoming article. PPD as the team leader, strategist, shotcaller, and monarch of the team, is able to make all the players work well together and find the correct solutions to whatever problems they encounter. Their team rating gives me hope that consistent performances are already occurring for some of the upper tier teams in Dota 2. This is very promising and, by my observation, will only continue to improve as others teams begin to do the same. The underlying reasons I associate to this future increase in consistency are to improved player development, an increase in the number of higher skilled players, and better infrastructure within the organizations. Even with their 3rd place finish, EG performed as expected, competing with the best of the best. They’ve been finishing in the top 3 of tournaments since 2014 and with ppd at the helm, it is likely to continue.

The Cinderella Story: Team Liquid

These guys came into this major as a middle of the pack team that was trying to claw its way up and make a name for themselves. Though the Team Liquid organization is well known, and respected, this team was a fresh creation that had potential to be either a good thing, or a bad thing. Their performance rating is mitigated by their group stage performances. They did well, don’t get me wrong. It appeared that as the event progressed Team Liquid were improving their synergy as well. The momentum was continually increasing. Their 2nd place finish, defeating EG 2-0 in the semifinals, is a testament of this. Their performance was both unexpected and exciting. The prospect of team synergy being this relevant is inspiring. To gain a better understanding, Team Liquid consists of FATA and Kuroky, two players that are some of the best in the world. Their 3 teammates are up and comers. The necessity for the right infrastructure to support and develop a team is essential. I am very hopeful that Team Liquid will continue to improve and become one of the top tier teams that helps promote and drive the Dota 2 esports scene to greater and higher benchmarks.

The Underperformers: LGD

This was a team performance that gave me much concern. This is the team that had the highest overall performance at TI5. Yet, in a little over half a year they eked out a performance that was beyond underwhelming and lacking for a former contender. This is another example on the importance of organizational infrastructure and team synergy. In the conventional sports world, such as in the NBA, it is not abnormal to encounter a clash between stars, when they are teammates. The unwillingness to alter one’s role or decrease their role is commonplace. This can develop into a rift and eventual roster changes. Hopefully LGD recovers from their roster changes, the Manila Major (data release is coming soon) was a positive first step, and can be ready for TI6.

Finally Victors: Secret

This is a team that has been considered a top tier contender for well over a year. Yet, when the stakes were highest, they would choke. This time was an exception and also a hopeful sign for better days ahead. The data shows that they performed amazingly. Even though EG had the best stats for the entire tournament, they ended up choking under the pressure of facing what many assumed was an inferior Team Liquid roster. The Upper Bracket Finals and the Grand Finals were a clear demonstration of Secret’s superiority over Team Liquid. Team Secret since the Shanghai Major has altered its roster and I hope that as a team, synergistically, will also be ready for TI6.

The Shanghai Major is a sign of great things to come for the future of competitive Dota 2. We saw more consistency in team and player performance. The data also shows to us that there is growth in regards to the depth of competitiveness. There are two large clusters in the team ratings. These clusters are located in the ratings at 70-75, and even more importantly from 80-82. Also, it is good to note that only one team has a rating below 60 (an improvement).

reminder: the rating system is not mitigated by a 0-100 performance design.