Since Dota 2 is one of the oldest Esports, it is no surprise that we have seen tons of professional players over the years. Many are no longer active or have decided to move to a coaching/managing role. Others, however, continue to compete alongside all of the new names in Dota 2.
Having more experience can be very helpful in many situations, especially when it comes to important matches. Many people new to the game do not know about the oldest Dota 2 players that are still active, so this article will share a few names that have left a significant mark on the game. Some of them have been around since the days of DotA, making them even more interesting.
Oldest Dota 2 Players That Are Still Active
Image Credit: Valve
Clement “Puppey” Ivanov
It’s safe to say Puppey is one of the first Dota 2 players to come to mind when thinking about this game. He is a living legend and has been playing the game since its arrival in 2011. What’s even more impressive about one of the oldest Dota 2 players is that he began his professional career in 2007 while playing DotA.
As for Puppey’s Dota 2 career, it’s safe to say he is one of the most iconic captains in the game’s history. Unlike many of the other big names in the game, Puppey only played for two clubs throughout his Dota 2 career. The first one is Natus Vincere, where he spent 3 years (2011-2014) and won the first-ever The International.
Since 2014, Puppey has been a part of Team Secret and is the club’s captain and co-founder. Even though Secret has not won The International, it has always been one of Western Europe’s top Dota 2 teams.
At the time of this writing, Puppey is 35 years old and has won more than $4.3M in prize money throughout his career. The Estonian star is still active, and it will be interesting to see if he steps down from competitive play in the next couple of years.
Kuro “KuroKy” Takhasomi
When highlighting the oldest Dota 2 players that are still active, we need to mention KuroKy. He is another old-school gamer who has been around since DotA and has always been one of the best in the game. Like Puppey, Kuro is also a well-known captain, but unlike him, the player played for numerous teams over the years.
KuroKy is a 32-year-old support player who has an impressive history in Dota 2. He played for the likes of mousesports and Virtus.Pro, Natus Vincere, Team Secet, and Team Liquid. What’s interesting is that Kuro won The International in 2017 with Team Liquid, and years after that, he and the other members of the organization left and formed a new Dota 2 org called Nigma Galaxy. Nowadays, Nigma Galaxy continues to be one of the famous Dota 2 teams, albeit not having good results in the last couple of years.
An interesting fact about KuroKy is that he is one of the Dota 2 players with the highest earnings – ~$5.3M.
Image Credit: Valve
Danil “Dendi” Ishutin
If there is one old-school Dota 2 player that everyone will recognize, it has to be Dendi. He is the most iconic midlaner in the game and one of the oldest players who is still active. Even though he has not been a part of the Tier 1 Dota 2 scene for many years, Dendi is actively playing as a mid-laner for his own organization called B8.
Prior to forming B8 in 2020, Dendi was a part of Natus Vincere (2009-2019). Despite the countless roster changes over the years, Dendi remained a core part of the team and even won the first The International (together with Puppey). Speaking of the latter, Dendi also began his professional career in DotA in 2007.
Nowadays, Dendi is 35 years old and is the captain and mid-laner of B8. Considering his experience, it’s no surprise that he is involved in many interesting statistics. For example, he is the only player in Dota 2 to take part in six Internationals while playing for one organization. He is also the all-time leader in terms of professional matches with Queen of Pain, Templar Assasin, and Pudge.
Image Credit: Valve
Marcus “Ace” Christensen
Even though Ace may not be as old-school as some of the oldest Dota 2 players on the list, he also deserves attention. The Danish superstar began his career in 2012 and has been one of the top carry players ever since. Over the years, Ace has been a part of countless teams, including the likes of MYM, C9, Team Secret, NiP, and, most recently, Gaimin Gladiators.
Speaking of GG, Ace was one of the reasons why this squad dominated in 2023 and won almost every tournament it played in. Ace is one of those core players that usually focuses on some of the more “different” heroes in Dota 2. This includes options like Lone Druid, Meepo, and others.
Ace is 31 years old and has won close to $2M throughout his career. Most of that money came in 2023, when he and Gaimin Gladiators won almost all the big tournaments.
Image Credit: Valve
Jingjun “Sneyking” Wu
The last Dota 2 player that we want to include on this list is Snekying. He is the youngest on the list at 29 years old (soon to be 30), but he has played professional Dota 2 since early 2012. Consequently, he is one of the most experienced players right now.
Sneyking has been involved in many big clubs over the years, including Team Dignitas, Newbee, Tundra Esports, and Team Falcons. In fact, he has been involved with the latter since November 2023 and has helped the team win many tournaments in 2024 (pretty much all of them aside from TI and the Riyadh Masters 2024).
The support player’s overall earnings so far are around $3.15M, making him one of the wealthiest names on this list.
There were many other legendary Dota 2 players who could have been on the list, but most are no longer playing. Some, such as xiao8, decided to focus on coaching, whereas others, like Iceiceice, are only streaming. That said, all of the names that we at Esports.net featured here are still active, and you can see them in action.