When you first start playing Dota 2, everything may seem confusing. There are 119 heroes, each with four distinct abilities, not to mention all the gameplay features you need to familiarize yourself with.

To make things more complicated, there are 208 different in-game items that give special abilities and bonus attributes to heroes. Each item provides different effects, and their pairings lead to many different outcomes.

But that's precisely what makes them so great. Your hero can carry up to ten items at a time while being able to use seven of them to cast various special abilities. It can store the remaining three in its backpack and swap them with other items anytime.

All those possibilities aside, there are other reasons why the Dota 2 item system is so exciting. Let's have a look.

There Are Many Ways to Earn Items for Free

You can earn Dota 2 items for free by simply playing the game. It doesn't matter whether you win or lose because your performance doesn't affect your chances of earning items.

Random item drops are based on your time in the game. The more time you spend playing, the more items you'll get. Whenever you reach another level, you'll also get an item drop. And the more you play via Matchmaking, the higher your chances of getting item drops.

You can even receive items for free as a spectator. If you watch an exclusive tournament game that garners more than 100 viewers, you can get Heroic items. Every time a certain event occurs during the game, such as a Godlike Spree, Double Kill, Ultra Kill, a Hero denial, or a victory, a random viewer gets a Heroic item.

You can also receive gift items when another player uses the Breathtaking Benefaction, the Shopkeeper's Surprise, or the Legendary Largesse during a match, or if they do it while you're in a Spectator mode. The item system randomly chooses a player for the gift.

You Don't Have to Buy Items If You Don't Want to

Items that you get in drops are neutral, and there are 58 of them. The remaining 150 are purchasable items that you can buy in the Dota 2 Store, on the Steam Community Market, or other marketplaces.

However, the game doesn't force you to do it. Everything except those items is free, including the game itself, and you can be an excellent Dota 2 player without spending real money.

What's exciting is that you can trade with other players to get various items. Just head to Steam and see what the community has to offer.

In-Game Cosmetics

In-game cosmetic items in Dota 2 are based on in-game items and abilities and provide various ambient and animation effects.

They customize visual elements only, which means they don't affect your gameplay. Their purpose is purely esthetic, and they exist to make your hero look more powerful.

You can win various cosmetic items during promotional events. You can even receive some of them automatically just for participating in certain events.

You can obtain Treasures that contain cosmetic items through Dota 2 Store purchases, random item drops, or Charms. Just like with regular items, you can obtain in-game cosmetics by playing Matchmaking games.

You can also get them by purchasing various physical merchandise, such as action figures.

Crafting Items

Crafting is a fun and useful feature that allows you to combine various cosmetic items to make new cosmetic items.

You don't need to learn different combinations, as there are Recipes that you can use. Recipes are consumable items that you can get in item drops after matches, in tournament drops, on the Steam Community Market, and in certain Treasures.

Getting the hang of Recipes may take some time, especially since some items have multiple recipes.

Loading Screen Items

Loading Screen items have a cosmetic purpose only. They're designed to change your loading screen's appearance when starting a new match. You can also set one as your profile's background.

There's a wealth of Loading Screens with extraordinary artwork that you can use to vamp up your profile. You can get them on the Steam Community Market.

Custom Sounds

Just like any other game, Dota 2 has a host of in-game sound effects that make the gameplay more engaging and interesting. But did you know that you can replace them with custom sounds?

You can change default announcer sounds by modding and even replace default music with custom tracks. Custom music packs that contain Mythical and Legendary tracks are also available as cosmetic items.

In-Game Tags

Dota 2 allows you to rename the items in your hero's backpack or give them a customized description.

To use a Name Tag or a Description Tag item, double- or right-click on it and type in a desired name or description. You can restore your custom in-game tags anytime using the Restore button.

You Can Sell Dota 2 Items Easily

If you have items in your inventory that you don't use and have no intention of using, you can always sell them for real money.

You can sell Dota 2 items on various online marketplaces that provide instant cash through various payment methods, or you can do it via your Steam account. Turning Dota 2 items into tangible currency couldn't be simpler.

Conclusion

There are a bunch of reasons why Dota 2 is one of the most exciting MOBA video games out there. Its rewarding item system is definitely one of them. It gives lots of useful items that can make your hero more powerful, but those for creating the visual elements pop certainly don't pale in comparison.

What's your experience with the Dota 2 item system? Which features are your favorite? Leave a comment below and spark an interesting conversation with the community!