Dota 2 Is Banning Players By Gifting Them Lumps of Coal

Dota 2 is banning players in a super cheeky way. Valve is one of the most respected video game developers out there, even if they don't make brand new games on a regular basis anymore. In the 2000s, Valve was on fire and cranked out games at a rapid rate while supporting Steam. We got multiple Half-Life games, Portal, Left 4 Dead, and many others. Eventually, Valve realized it would rather invest in supporting its live service games like Dota 2, Counter-Strike, and also supporting Steam. They also made efforts to get into the hardware business with PCs, VR headsets, and perhaps its most successful device, the Steam Deck.

Valve is arguably one of the most successful live service video game developers out there given games like Dota 2 and Counter-Strike are two of the most played games on Steam despite the fact they have been out for years. Both of those games currently sit at the top of the charts and can consistently be found there. It's actually impressive when something comes out and manages to top them as a result. With all of that said, players are remembering once again why they love Dota 2 and Valve. Dota 2 currently has a Christmas themed event going on right now and players can earn loot boxes with random goodies inside of them. However, players have learned that sometimes these boxes contain lumps of coal and they're not just a goofy gag gift, they actually ban you. Streamer masondota2 was on the unlucky end of this deal and opened up a chest with a lump of coal which also informed him he had been banned for "smurfing" or other violations in the terms of service. Assuming it was a joke, he went to go find a new match and realized it was real and he was truly banned.

Valve has permanently banned Dota 2 streamer "Mason" for high levels of toxicity by getting him to open a Christmas gift which was just a lump of coal and his ban 😂

Never seen anything like this pic.twitter.com/YZzSZlBKhu

— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) December 15, 2023

It's a pretty clever way for Valve to hand out Dota 2 bans. Most games would just give you a straightforward error message, but Valve went the extra mile to really humiliate those who are getting banned in a festive way. Whether or not masondota2 will be unbanned is unclear, but it is a pretty hilarious method of banning people.