Defense of the Ancients 2, more popularly referred to as DotA 2, is still several days away from its official release, but the prelude to the epic curtain raiser is going from strength to strength. Set in the sparkling metropolis of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on the 17th to 18th December, is the next chapter of the overture - The DotA 2 Malaysia Invitational.

Five countries from over e-club’s participating territories, namely Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand, will be represented at the games, with a total of eight teams set to duke it out in the proceedings. Organizing correspondent Dylan Ang from Asian CyberGames is primed to put on a solid tournament for both the participants and the fans alike. “We hope that our tournament will be the focus point of the event and we’re expecting very competitive matches (during the games).”

The competitors for the tournament carry with them an illustrious and decorated past, with the likes of Mineski.Infinity (Philippines), Orange (Malaysia) and AEON (Singapore) in the fray, picking a favorite for the competition will not be an easy task. However the fan favorites will undoubtedly be MUFC (Malaysia), riding on the back of the WCG AC wins, the team will definitely be buoyed by the presence of home support. But prudence is advised with the other participating teams, in no particular order; MiTH.Trust (Thailand), RedSpade.DotA (Brunei), Neolution E-Sport (Thailand) and MYM (Singapore), raring to leave a strong impression pre-release of the Valve game.

However, the feistiness of competition aside, Dylan would like to draw attention to the larger picture at hand—and that is the promotion and development of DotA 2 as a major eSports title for the region. “DotA 2 will exceed the expectations of all gamers. We are hoping that the eSports scene will not only accept but embrace DotA 2 as one of the best and most popular eSports game around.”

The games will feature a double elimination format (i.e. 2 brackets, the winners and losers brackets), and a prize pool of more than US$10,000, excluding medals, trophies and other awards. The rules and regulations stipulated will not defer much from other DotA 2 tournaments assures Dylan but the key difference between DotA tournaments and DotA 2 games is worth pointing out, “DotA 2 has a few new features which enables a player to reconnect after disconnection.”

So if you’re in the area come 17th - 18th December, head on down to KLCC, Malaysia, to cheer your favorite local teams and revel in some of the most entertaining DotA 2 match ups yet! For more information on the games, head on down to the official site.