DOTA 2 to be F2P, store and Steam Workshop detailed

Valve has detailed its community-driven plans for DOTA 2's monetisation, and as expected, they involve hats.

The MOBA will be supported by an dedicated store and customisation system called the Spoils of War. Players will be able to put together unique heroes by purchasing cosmetic items, which vary in price depending on rarity.

Moreover, thanks to full Steam Workshop integration, you'll be be able to craft your own items and offer them for sale; as Valve points out, this system has earned $3,5 million for Team Fortress 2 modders.

All heroes will, however, be free.

"DOTA 2 will not be a pay-to-win game. All the items in the store are cosmetic, and don’t affect gameplay," Valve wrote in an introductory blog post.

"All of the heroes will be available free of charge. We believe restricting player access to heroes could be destructive to game design, so it’s something we plan to avoid.

"Dota’s always been a game where the community has had an extremely active role in driving it forward, from the huge amount of feedback that Icefrog receives to the number of suggestions posted in the hero ideas forums. We wanted to make sure that Dota 2 expands on that community interaction even further, to the point where players can directly contribute to the game itself."

There's a detailed FAQ you can plunder for more information and reassurance.

DOTA 2's most notable rival for the MOBA crown, League of Legends, is a frequently-cited free-to-play success story, now fronting the plumpest prize pools in eSports history.

Thanks, Kotaku.