Creeps, shop placement, yes, that has a huge effect on the game. Ward locations don't provide the same vision. You can do the triple pull trick on the radiant side and not the dire, access to certain parts of the map have different timings, it has an extreme effect on the gameplay. There was a time when picking Lycan was instant GG, loss if picked on radiant and win if picked on dire. They are incredibly different, and playing on each side is a completely different experience.