I Can’t Hear You: Gestures, Stereotypes, and Brushings against the Player in Dota 2

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Starting from the moment Sébastien “Ceb” Debs put a hand on his ear to taunt the crowd at the International Dota 2 Championships in Shanghai, this article investigates the way stereotypical gestures both inside and outside videogames mediate cross-cultural communication. Following Giorgio Agamben’s concept of gesture and Rey Chow’s work on stereotypes, we unfold Ceb’s “I can’t hear you” across a series of tournaments to uncover the unique ways language, race, ability, and money shape the Dota 2 metagame.