Just like in real life (that other thing that isn't Dota) a negative attitude, fear of failure and anger can make you lose your focus and turn one mistake into a losing game.

Dota along with other similar games has garnered a reputation in the gaming community for having a highly toxic playerbase.

When you decide that you're going to lose before a game is over, then your chances of making a comeback diminish greatly. When you lash out at your teammates or other players, your negative attitude can demoralize your team, cause distraction and lead to more mistakes.

Remember, you have five enemies in every Dota game. Don't make four more.

This guide has one simple purpose, to teach you the power of positive thinking. By applying a few basic principles and thinking positively you can even turn a loss, into a win.

Everyone starts somewhere. No one becomes a professional Dota player after their first game...or many successive games after that. In fact, actual professional Dota players make up less than 1% of the entire Dota playerbase. Odds are incredibly likely you're not part of that fractional percent.

Many players who have had a good deal of experience playing Dota will create new "smurf" accounts, some attempting to re-calibrate to a higher MMR they believe they deserve and many simply wanting to feel superior by "pwning noobs." If you are one of these "smurf" players, you are going to find yourself playing with players who are new to the game. So before you berate them remember, they don't have hundreds or thousands of hours of experience like you.

Dota's Matchmaking system is definitely nowhere near perfect. If you play solo pub games, then you're going to matched with any random people Steam decides to match you with. There are some things you should expect from a team comprised of random players.

Your fellow pubs may or may not know how to use their skills, initiate, when to push, how to teamfight, how to support, buy wards and place them properly, call missing and so on. If you don't communicate with your team, this is even more likely to be the case. If you play a lot of solo pubs and this happens to you constantly and you are angry and surprised every time this happens then you are basically repeatedly touching a hot stove even though you've been burned before.

You have to get a feel for a team of players you don't know. Before you do, be ready for anything...good or bad.

If you don't like playing with random people, try partying up with friends. If you don't have any/many Steam friends who play Dota then make some! Even though both ranked and unranked have MMR and hidden MMR, the matchmaking system isn't perfect. Sometimes you will get players who are below your skill level and sometimes you will get players who are above your skill level.

You can't win every game with the same hero with the same build, no matter how good you are. If you don't take team synergy, strategy and counter-picks into consideration, you aren't going to meta-stomp every single game you play. For every meta, there is a counter-meta.

Don't treat Dota like a matter of life and death. It isn't. If you're not competing in professional tournaments and getting paid in oversized novelty checks then it's okay to lose. In fact, believe it or not, professionals lose games too!

You will always lose when you play the blame game. Once you start blaming and raging at your teammates, your negativity can snowball into a loss.

Blaming leads to arguments, loss of focus on the game and creates animosity between teammates.

There are only two things you need to win Dota...teamwork and communication. When you blame, berate and blowup at your fellow teammates you destroy both the teamwork and communication needed to be successful in Dota.

Whenever a player dies, often times they are quick to blame other players for their deaths. While, another teammate may or may not have contributed to their death, immediately lashing out at them will not help you win. You are already dead. Instead, think about how you can avoid dying like that in the future. If a teammate could have helped you avoid death, think about what you both could have done better and convey that to your teammates in a constructive manner, e.g. "Can you place a ward in the jungle please?"

And remember, if you have supports on your team, if they are playing their role properly they will have less items and less gold than you so you can also help yourself sometimes by purchasing wards, upgrading courier, etc.

One mistake or death, followed by player infighting can lead to lost focus and in Dota it only takes a second of losing focus to make another mistake or give up another kill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wW57M6Cjvgs

How often have you heard "GG" after your team makes a few mistakes? If you believe you have lost the game before it's over and play the game like you have already lost then it is more likely that you will lose.

Before you begin a game, visualize your victory. Instead of yelling at your teammates, encourage them and give them advice. Don't give them back-handed advice, e.g., "Why don't you buy wards you dumbasses?" Instead try something like, "We really need some wards, here and here." or "You should buy this item." or "You need to play more defensively."

Some players need a little more help than others and it can be hard to teach the game to someone during an actual game but a little friendly advice can go a long way.

Look at the commend options in Dota: Friendly, Forgiving, Teaching and Leadership. Be friendly, forgiving, teaching and a leader.

There's a reason why Valve made the commend system. It's not just to say, "COMMEND PLS." after going on a pubstomp. These are the principles you should actually play by.

Some players will react to any advice or criticism negatively, no matter what because they have become conditioned to the general negative attitude that is prevalent throughout Dota.

Don't reflect their negativity. If they won't listen to constructive advice and continue making bad decisions there is nothing you can do to stop them, save for reporting. Try to make the best of a bad situation.

There are definitely, "wrong" builds. However, there are also numerous builds that might also be right. They might not always be optimal but no one build is the answer to every game of Dota. Keep that in mind when you are giving advice to your teammates.

Don't use every death as an opportunity to criticize your teammates. Was there anything they could have done to tip the balance of a teamfight? If so, then give them constructive advice. Also, ask yourself is there anything you could have done. If you were simply outplayed by the other team then resist the urge to lash out at your teammates. Instead, regroup and make note of the enemy's tactics and strategize how you can overcome them because it is highly likely they will use those tactics in the next teamfight.

If you are afraid to lose, your fear will work against you and it is more likely that you will lose.
When a player makes a mistake and gets yelled at for it, they will be more afraid of making another mistake. You might think that would be a good thing but players who are afraid to die are afraid to farm, afraid to push and afraid to initiate in a teamfight.

Fear is a basic survival mechanism and there is of course such a thing as healthy fear. When faced with fear and uncertainty in Dota...buy wards silly. Hesitation in a teamfight can mean the difference between your team getting wiped or the enemy getting wiped.

Remember, Dota is just a game. It is not life and death. Once the laning phase is over, you need confident teammates to win pushes and teamfights. If you tell a teammate how horrible they are and how you're losing because of them, it's more likely that you will lose...because of your attitude.

Players may also become indignant and if they weren't feeding intentionally, they might start and when you could really use a heal, stun or ability from that player, they might be less likely to help you as well.

If you're afraid of losing, you're not just afraid of losing...you're afraid of Dota. That sounds silly now doesn't it?

You're going to lose games. It's going to happen, no matter what. It's how you treat those losses that truly determines the outcome.

You can win Dota, even when you lose a game by maintaining a positive attitude with your teammates and even your opponents.

Ask yourself one simple question, "Am I having fun?" If the answer is no, then why are you playing? And if the only way you can have fun is to win, then statistically, roughly 50% of the time you're going to have a bad time.

How can you have fun 100% of the time? By being positive. Take the bad with the good. Learn from your mistakes and learn from your victories. Learn from your teammates' mistakes and victories as well. Use that knowledge to become a better player and a better teammate.

Even if you're playing a losing game, you can use it as an opportunity to learn or even practice your last hitting. A *LOT* of people seriously need to practice their last hitting. (including me)

I played a game recently with a very uncoordinated team. We lost all of our lanes and our rax and our Ancient were in trouble. GG, right? No. I didn't yell and insult my teammates' mothers for putting them on Earth. Instead, I gave constructive advice and urged them to keep playing even though it looked like a losing game. We turned a couple kills into a couple teamwipes on the opposing team. I still had to defend our base from creeps. Finally, we pushed on mid together even though our Ancient was in jeopardy. We took down their mids, destroyed their Ancient and won the game.

If I had given up or if I had spent the game constantly yelling at my teammates, we would have lost. Instead, I encouraged them and they rallied with me. And even if we had lost, you know what? I still would have had fun. You can't turn every game around like that but with a positive attitude, at least you've got a chance and at least you're having fun. If you're yelling at people through your computer screen, you are not having fun. In fact, it could even be bad for your health.

Don't expect your teammates to know everything you do. Dota is a learning experience and the game is always changing.

And if you're on the receiving end of raging and temper tantrums, don't respond to it and don't lose your focus by arguing with them. Just shrug it off. So what if someone calls you a name? They're just words on a computer screen.

And if you feel like you're in a rut (or what is referred to as "tilted"), off your game and just not having fun it's always okay to take a break from Dota. Maybe play a relaxing game of Dark Souls instead. ;)

Also, as some astute readers have pointed out, you can apply these principles to pretty much any game.

Remember these simple principles and you will win even when you lose.

Hey, everyone gets a little spicy from time to time and does a little trashtalking, even me. But there's a limit. If you're just spouting a constant stream of profanity, racial slurs, telling everyone you're going to report them and that you're going to find out where they live then you have exceeded the boundaries of gentlemanly trashtalking.

Sometimes to let off Steam, you need to get off Steam. Take a break, play some Bad Rats, go outside, smell the fresh air or just sit on your butt and watch some Netflix.

If you want to avoid or stop getting Low Priority then you need to adjust your in-game behavior and your attitude. That is entirely up to you. If you continue down the warpath then don't expect to get sympathy because "the system" is out to get you. Take responsibility for your actions.

Flaming your teammates and the enemy is easy. The real challenge is saying "good game" and meaning it. Even in the worst games, there are still opportunities to learn.

If all these suggestions fail and you still find yourself having bad games and succumbing to the dark side...go for the nuclear option.

Get the Rick & Morty announcer/mega kill packs. They make even ♥♥♥♥♥♥ games hilarious.

Want to get the most mileage from your in-game reports? Learn who to report, how to report and when to report!
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Got Low Priority? Wondering why? Just in case this guide didn't clear it up already then read on:
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New to Dota 2?
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Need more tips on matchmaking and teamwork?
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