I seriously doubt that stock Warcraft heroes have anywhere near the complexity in hero mechanics or fancy item stuff that DotA adds
Maybe you missed the part where you have to control 3? 3 heroes by the way, that each have their own 6-sized item slot...So if you've having trouble using your 6 slots in DotA, think of how a professional WC3 player must feel.
never mind all of the map features. 
What map features, exactly, make DotA more complicated? Your "army" controls itself for you. You play on the exact same map every time, where a WC3 players has to learn the layout of dozens of maps. The shops are always in the same location, where in a WC3 map they're always in different locations, doing different things. In DotA, the mercenary camps are pretty similar and predictible every time, where in WC3 they vary wildly every game, etc. etc.
Would you say Starcraft is a less complex strategy game because it has less focus on the "strategy" parts than C&C, which in turn has less focus on strategy over tactics than the SupCom series?
You would first have to convince me that C&C has more strategy than Starcraft, of which I don't think you could. Many of the units in C&C were just flat out useless in multiplayer, or at least completely underpowered compared to others, so your options were pretty small. In Starcraft, every unit has an important role, if you know how to use it wisely.
Besides, a lot of people think that tactical and strategic games are mutually exclusive - not so. A game can have a heavy focus on tactics and micromanagement, and still have a great bit of grand strategy as well. Claiming otherwise is like saying a Ferarri can't be fast and elegant too.
So movies like watership down , or games planetary annhilation or team fortress 2 are more child like because of their animation style?
Team Fortress 2 seems to target a pretty childlike audience to me, it's certainly not a very deep game in my experience. I haven't played Planetary Annihilation so I can't comment, and I've never seen watership down.
Watership Down is book/ movies about bunnies, yet none would say it is for anything short of teenagers.
I've never heard of Watership Down before, but I have read George Orwell's Animal Farm.
However, to compare a literary masterpiece using childish themes to make profound adult messages, to Teemo and Annie, is somewhat hilarous to me.
I once had a discussion with a forum full of people who were attempting to convince me that My Little Pony, the most blatantly innocent child-targetting cartoon T.V. show ever, was actually made for adults because of its deep adult messages hidden intricately inside its themes. I get the sneaking suspicion that you would have been on the opposite side of that discussion as well
If anything, that caters to any male except the very youngest.
It caters to immature males, who still have a very childlike interpretation of how a woman should act and dress.
Why is that child like? Is it the xp system? Or the fact you get abilities as you level up? How is DotA 2 any different?
As with most grindy RPGs, WoW gives the illusion of progress by "leveling" your character up, while you as a person don't improve at all. League of Legends is doing the same thing. They've tricked people into thinking they're improving in a meaningful well with levels, skills, champion unlocks, runes, and masteries. DotA doesn't have to do that, you KNOW you've improved because you can see such a huge difference in the way you play and the outcomes of every new game.
I understand your point. But none of it decisively proves it.
Of course it doesn't, which is why I prefaced that whole part with, "it's just my opinion".
So FPS shooter games, where you control one character and don't buy your items are also less complex still?
Absolutely. The skill in most FPS games doesn't come from their complexity, but from your own personal skill. Most FPS games are very easy to pick up and learn, but take a long time to master. The "skills" required to play FPS games are twitch reflexes, knowing the map layouts, teamwork, and a general understanding of the game by experiencing it a lot. None of these skills are particularly complex, they just take time to develop. That's pretty much how I feel about LoL as well.
Anybody could become a decent Call of Duty or Halo player if they devoted enough time to it, not everybody could become a good Starcraft 2 player, even if they tried.
