:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/1954013/screen_shot_2012-08-27_at_1.14.32_pm.0.png)
"The International," a worldwide Dota 2 tournament sponsored by developer Valve, began its preliminary rounds this weekend and will viewable online.
"The International," a worldwide Dota 2 tournament sponsored by developer Valve, began its preliminary rounds this weekend and will viewable online, according the the tournament's website.
In the preliminary rounds, which run from August 26th through 28th, two groups of eight teams face off twice against each opponent in the group. The top and bottom four teams earn spots in the winners and losers brackets, respectively. Those groups advance to the main event, which will run from August 31st through September 2nd at Benaroya Hall in Seattle alongside PAX Prime, where Polygon will be in attendance.
During the main event, teams in the winners bracket will battle in best of three matches, while those in the losers bracket will fight in single-elimination games until the last two rounds, where the surviving teams face best of three matches. The remaining teams from each bracket will face off in the championship finals for a grand prize of $1 million.
The tournament will be streamed live with commentary across the web, and the tournament's website includes a schedule of events. Valve has also enabled spectators to watch the tournament through Dota 2's recently-released Spectator Client, which allows players to watch Dota 2 matches through the software without playing the game.
