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Hearthstone expansion coming 'soon,' iPhone and Android versions by end of year
Eric Dodds, lead designer for Blizzard's digital card game/spare time killer, Hearthstone, told Joystiq at PAX Prime that an expansion for the game will be coming "soon." The expansion will add new cards and lots of them - more than 100, actually. Unfortunately for those who enjoyed taking on the hordes of the undead in Curse of Naxxramas, the expansion will not feature additional single-player content. Dodds clarified that Naxxramas is an "adventure," while what's coming is an "expansion." Still, don't rule out more adventures in the future; Dodds said that, while Hearthstone is "primarily a PvP game," the single-player content allows the game's designers to steer players into trying new classes and strategies. The goal is that players will take those strategies into the multiplayer arena, but even if they don't, it provides an avenue where players can think differently than they're used to. As for those iPhone and Android versions? "Still in progress," Dodds told Joystiq. But they should be *ahem* ready to ride by the end of the year. [Image: Blizzard]
PAX Prime 2014: Hearthstone eyes an expansion
The PAX Prime Blizzard booth was one of the larger and more populated venues on the show floor this year. A slow-moving line wrapped around it as players waited eagerly to try out Warlords of Draenor or to see Heroes of the Storm for the first time. Yet it was Hearthstone -- a free-to-play game available to anyone at anytime -- that was winning gamers over. I talked with Game Director Eric Dodds about how this small project at Blizzard blew up into a great success story. He said that when the team noticed that Twitch livestreams of Hearthstone were drawing in thousands and tens of thousands of viewers is when the studio knew that it had a hit on its hands.
Jukebox Heroes: Hearthstone's soundtrack
A new Blizzard game is a reason for soundtrack lovers everywhere to celebrate because if there's one thing this studio does well (other than take goofy races very seriously), it's creating incredible scores for its games. Even though Hearthstone is a smaller title with a smaller score, I welcomed it nevertheless. Composers Peter McConnell, Jason Hayes, and Eric Dodds clearly had a lot of fun creating the whimsical, relaxing score for this game, and I must say that the music is perfectly ideal for the material. It hearkens back to the many tavern themes from World of Warcraft without being a complete copycat. You can actually download the entire soundtrack for free on the Hearthstone official site, but before you do that, why not listen to my favorite picks from the score?
Hearthstone promises fewer card changes in open beta
All CCG and TCG players fear "the big nerf" that will change a beloved card, and in turn, an entire deck. However, such changes and tweaks are part of any card game, and in a blog post today, Lead Designer Eric Dodds explained the team's philosophy behind keeping Hearthstone balanced. Dodds said that such changes need to be made when cards cause non-interactive games, are frustrating to play against, are causing confusion, aren't intuitive enough, are too strong compared to other cards with a similar cost, or are too weak. "Hearthstone is at its most fun when you're solving an interesting puzzle each turn," he wrote. "Your opponent's minions, your minions, and the cards in your hand are all pieces to this puzzle, and when your opponent removes parts of the puzzle, it can be less fun to play." Even with these reasons, Dodds promised that the team plans to make "very few card changes" when Hearthstone goes into open beta. "Giving you confidence in your cards and the play environment is very important to us, and each card change we make potentially undermines that confidence," he said.
Hearthstone makes three music tracks available
Blizzard wants to give you an earful -- of Hearthstone, that is. The studio's released a handful of music tracks from the upcoming digital card game, and you can get them for free right the heck now. If the score sounds a little familiar, that's on purpose. Lead Designer Eric Dodds commented on the soundtrack's aim, saying, "Ultimately, we wanted the music to convey three important things -- Warcraft, whimsy, and warmth -- to reflect the lighthearted nature of the game, and to make players feel as though they were sitting in their favorite tavern from Warcraft." The released tracks are Hearthstone Revealed, Bad Reputation, and Tabletop Battles.
Hearthstone play and developer Q&A
Over the weekend, as I mentioned in WRUP, I was in Paris. What I didn't mention was that I was there for the EU Fansite Community Summit at Blizzard Europe in Versailles. Blizzard's EU team were fantastically generous and wonderful hosts, and it was an excellent weekend altogether. The biggest highlight for me, and almost certainly for everyone else there, was that we got to play Hearthstone! We had about enough time for three full games, in a relaxed setting, but also with the Blizzard EU Community Team floating around to help us out and give us tips and input on how best to play. It was a fantastic surprise. Even more amazing to a Blizzard geek like me was that, shortly after finishing our game time, we got to sit down for a Q&A about Hearthstone with none other than the lead developers Ben Brode and Eric Dodds. So, what came out of that? Hearthstone Gameplay How was Hearthstone? First and foremost, what we got to play was an alpha, which only developers and internal staff had previously accessed. It has not changed a great deal in overall appearance since PAX, but many key gameplay changes have been incorporated. Unfortunately, due to Blizzard policy, we were unable to take pictures or video of the play session or anything else that took place.
Interview: Talking Hearthstone with the developers
Want to know more about Blizzard's new digital card game, Hearthstone? During PAX East 2013, we spoke with Hearthstone Lead Designer Eric Dodds and Production Director Jason Chayes to learn some additional information about the game. During the 20-minute interview, I asked the developers several questions, some on behalf of the lore nerds, others for the collectors among us. We discussed some of the game features planned for launch, as well as the possibility of implementing e-sports capabilities later. Also touched upon were the game's visual aspects, like the art work and animated game boards. And for those of you with a history playing other strategy card games like Magic: The Gathering, I learned a bit more about Hearthstone gameplay and how the Forge works.
