Dota 2

In Dota 2, two teams of five push down three lanes towards the enemy Ancient. Destroy it and you win. A match usually runs 30 to 50 minutes and leaving halfway gets you penalized, so this isn’t a game for a quick ten-minute session.

All heroes, more than 120 of them, are open from day one. Money only buys cosmetics and the Dota Plus subscription, neither of which makes a hero stronger. Valve is more generous here than its rivals: League of Legends makes you unlock champions.

The price you pay is the learning curve. On top of the hero abilities there are over a hundred items, and your first few dozen matches will mostly go to figuring out why you just died.

Hardware won’t be a problem. The minimum is 4 GB of RAM, half of what CS2 asks for, plus 60 GB of storage. Dota 2 is PC only, through Steam. Not sure where to start? Our guide covers the best heroes for beginners.