Dota 2 lead developer and master of balance IceFrog has always been known for putting out huge, sweeping changes to the game after a particular patch has outlived its useful life.
From here on out, though, the community will have to get used to smaller, more frequent balance updates. Yesterday, IceFrog announced that Dota 2 will be on a bi-weekly patch schedule for six months. Tweaks and adjustments will be made every other Thursday rather than having the metagame stay the same for extended periods of time.
After the six-month period is over, the development team will “reevaluate” the new approach to balancing the game. If successful, this could be the future for how the game is developed over time.
To go along with this new system, Valve will be implementing a new feature to the Dota 2 client which automatically notifies players of any changes to heroes in their matches.
This will likely have a noticeable impact in the professional scene. Teams participating in tournaments where schedules coincide with a patch day will have to find a way to adapt right in the middle of the competition. Of course, this has happened before, but with the new system it will happen more frequently—unless tournaments are able to play on old patches.
IceFrog has not yet revealed when the first bi-weekly patch will be released.
