Reddit forum users conducted a study which showed that the global patch 7.38 did not lead to a significant increase in players for Dota 2. According to the statistics, the number of players after the update was lower than during the release of the Acts of the "Crownfall" event.

The global update 7.38 was released on February 19, 2025. On this day, the peak online count in Dota 2 reached 708,000 players. By comparison, during the release of various Acts of the "Crownfall" event, these numbers were significantly higher:

• Act 1 – 928,000 players
• Act 2 – 928,000 players
• Act 3 – 805,000 players
• Act 4 – 798,000 players

On February 19, Valve released a major update that significantly revamped the map terrain, mechanics, items, heroes, and overall balance of the game. Read more about these changes at this link