Hearthstone
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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.
Hearthstone's Earth Elemental card deals a world of pun-ishment
Over on the Hearthstone official site, a new shaman minion card has been revealed: the Earth Elemental, and it's designed to deal crushing blows to its opponents. This minion has a truly mountainous amount of attack power and health compared to its mana cost. Be careful, though, its Overload ability reduces your available mana for the following turn, which could make the going a bit rocky! To avoid this, you can pair the Earth Elemental with complementary cards such as the Ancestral Spirit, which will bring it back to combat without incurring the penalty and help to crystallize your victory. As a bonus, the preview also details another card that works well with Ancestral Spirit, but you'll have to rock up the page yourself to find out what. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to run away from my computer to hide from the landslide of outrage I fully expect my (word)Play Hearthstone plug to incur!
Wowhead launches Hearthstone section
Our friends at Wowhead seem to have caught Hearthstone fever -- and, really, who can blame them? In addition to the site's very handy WoW data, they've added a new Hearthstone section that has a database of cards for you to search. Obviously, no one has access to a Hearthstone client, so Wowhead is pulling this info from datamining -- which means it's incomplete and may contain errors. And, of course, with the game not even in beta yet, everything you see now is still subject to change; maybe even a lot of change. However, with a database of just over 500 cards already on the site, it's a pretty impressive collection and a great way to get an early look at the game. The Hearthstone section lets you search for cards and, when you've found one you're interested in, displays card artwork (and the artist), type, quality, class, set, casting cost, special abilities, and health and attack for cards that have it. And, like the rest of Wowhead, each card has its own comments section -- though we haven't run into any cards with comments so far. So while we continue to wait for our beta keys (they're in the mail, right, Blizzard?), we'll be sure to be prepared by checking out all of the cards on Wowhead.
The Queue: Looking to the future
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. In yesterday's edition of The Queue, there seemed to be more questions about the next expansion than the current one. Since the next expansion hasn't even been announced yet, there isn't much we can do with those, but we sure can try. Joey4 asked: weapon models to me seem to go by expansion theme, wrath had a dark cold look especially on greens and mists had the Asian theme, do you think we will see awesome looking models again like BC xpac had in the next xpac?
Live Hearthstone Stream
Update: The livestream is now over, but you can check out the Video on Demand above! The final game is very much worth sticking around for, really captures the excitement of Hearthstone. We hope to see more of these in future! If you're as excited about Hearthstone as we are here at WoW Insider, you'll want to check out the above stream, as Hearthstone Fireside Duels go live on Twitch.tv. Lead Designer Eric Dodds and designer and Shoutcaster Ben Brode, who is fast becoming the voice of Hearthstone, are sitting down to several duels, as well as answering viewer questions on Twitch and Twitter. The duels so far have shown off the mage, shaman, warrior, paladin, warlock and druid, but it's possible that we'll get to see some of the other heroes in action today, as well as the minion cards. It's also a great chance to get more into the game's mechanics, and develop more understanding, thanks to the live nature of the duels, and the Q&A. Community Manager Phenteo is also on hand in the Twitch chatroom to field viewer questions. The one question they don't seem that keen to answer just yet is this: does this mean a beta is impending? It seems fairly certain that Hearthstone will be at Blizzcon, at the latest, but who knows, it seems quite likely that there might even be a beta at Gamescom, given that Blizzard unveiled the Mists trailer there last year. What do you think?
Hearthstone card preview: Void Terror
It looks like Blizzard has begun revealing Hearthstone cards prior to release, with the first being the Void Terror warlock minion. This big bad blue dude absorbs the minions on either side of him, adding their power and life to his own. Even temporary power or health bonuses, like the +4/+4 from Power Overwhelming, are made permanent inside the Void Terror's blue belly. Need to protect from an incoming AOE attack? Gobble your other little minions up and let your Void Terror take the attack instead. It's a super simple and super powerful effect, fitting for a warlock and especially for Gul'dan, currently the game's sole warlock hero. Check out all of our Hearthstone coverage thus far and stay tuned as the game gets closer to release.
How to sign up for the Hearthstone beta
So you've heard a lot about Blizzard's latest game, the free, digital CCG Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and you can't wait to get into the beta. But how do you get in on that sweet, beta testing action? Signing up to beta Hearthstone is pretty simple, but involves a few steps that may not be entirely obvious -- we'll walk you through them so you can have a chance to be one of the first to check out Hearthstone for yourself. Whether you get into the beta or not, you can get a feel for Hearthstone by checking out the two match videos they've released so far -- one showing Jaina battling Thrall and the other showing Garrosh battling Uther. But for now there's nothing to do but sign up and be patient until the beta gets started. Read on for instructions!
Latest Hearthstone shoutcast pits Uther against Garrosh
If you've been waiting for more details on Hearthstone, wait no more! Blizzard has released another shoutcasted match to give us an up close look at gameplay. In this video, game designer Ben Brode provides commentary on a battle between the paladin Uther the Lightbringer and the warrior Garrosh Hellscream (if you recall, the last shoutcast showed us a mage battling a shaman). We won't give away the ending, but suffice to say it's an epic battle featuring interesting tricks like secret cards as well as old friends like Illidan Stormage, Cairne Bloodhoof, and, everyone's favorite, Leeroy Jenkins. Though Leeroy's artwork is familiar to anyone who played the TCG, Hearthstone's version of the infamous Mr. Jenkins is perhaps even more dangerous, summoning whelps that aid your opponent. So check out the shoutcast and PlayHearthstone's YouTube channel for more videos. %Gallery-183564%
Paladin and Warrior go mano-a-mano in new Hearthstone video
Blizzard's online World of Warcraft CCG, Hearthstone, is supposed to be heading into beta sometime soon™. But to hold fans over until then, the studio has released a new video featuring a duel between the Warrior and Paladin classes, complete with play-by-play commentary. Whether you're looking to wrap your head around the basic rules of the game or trying to pick up on some more advanced strategies to get a leg-up on the competition, this video has something for you. So what are you waiting for? Click on past the cut for the full video; it's time to d-d-d-d-duel! Or something like that, anyway.
Shadow Era gets a new expansion, a new website, and a new app
These days, the only iOS card game I'm playing with any regularity is SolForge -- I wish there was a little more to it, but the mechanics are very well-constructed. Shadow Era, one of the first collectible card games on the App Store, is still kicking around, however, and has gotten bigger than ever. The game's developers, now called Wulven Game Studios, have sent along word that they've just added a new expansion to the title, and they've released a brand-new app for that expansion, called Shadow Era: Dark Prophecies. Dark Prophecies adds about 150 new cards to the game, along with a new mechanic called Steadfast, and a new format, called Meltdown. The game also has a brand-new website to show off all of the latest content and news, so you can head there if you want to learn more. As always, Shadow Era remains free to play, with the opportunity to buy extra "crystals" if you want to pick up more cards sooner. With Blizzard's Hearthstone announcement and the onset of Rage of Bahamut-inspired card battlers, collectible card games are about to get even more popular on the App Store. But Shadow Era was one of the first out there, and it remains one of the best.
The Queue: Two dead gnomes
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Why are they here? Nobody knows. On second thought, maybe they're grummles. @Skeptikk asked: Read any news from Blizzard on the new spam in the calendar that players are seeing?
Hearthstone gameplay video pits Jaina against Thrall
If you're hyped about Hearthstone -- or even if you're just curious as to what Blizzard's latest is all about -- you'll want to check out this gameplay video. The video shows a complete match between Jaina (a mage) and Thrall (a shaman), giving us a good look at how the game plays as well as the abilities of these two heroes. And, just so we aren't lost in the newness of it all, the video features a narrated play-by-play to walk us through the action. We've got to say, it looks promising: featuring familiar characters, skills, and abilities, brightly-colored Blizzard art, and fast gameplay. Psst, Blizzard, our beta keys are in the mail, right? Well, even if they aren't, we hope this is only the first of many such videos on PlayHearthstone's YouTube channel, because it really just makes us curious as to what other classes and heroes can do. [via Massively]
Hearthstone video pits mage against shaman
If you're interested in Blizzard's upcoming Hearthstone CCG and have about 10 minutes to spare, your time could be put to worse use than by watching the following video. Said video features a match-up between a Mage player and a Shaman player as they duel with all manner of nasty cards, totems, and surprises. A narrator attempts to give a play-by-play as the action flows thick and furious, giving us a deeper insight into how Hearthstone plays and what strategies players might use in the future. Give it a watch after the break, and don't forget to read our own hands-on with the title!
Possible in-game Hearthstone event and mount uncovered
Diligent dataminers over at Wowhead have uncovered what looks like an intriguing Feat of Strength: Hearthstoned. The description reads "Obtain the Hearthsteed from the Hearthstone promotion." Now, ever since Blizzard announced Hearthstone at PAX East and it was clear the game took place in the Warcraft universe, folks have been asking all over whether or not there would be WoW-related items associated with it, just as there currently are in the physical WoW: TCG. While this isn't quite the same thing as a loot card, it is a connection of some sort! We here at WoW Insider would also like to point out that the mount icon on this achievement looks suspiciously similar to the pegasus mounts that were datamined last week! I'm going to try not to speculate too hard on what kind of in-game event Blizzard might do for Hearthstone, but it would be really cool to see, say, a bunch of NPCs hanging around in various Azerothian taverns playing card games and talking trash to each other. Hint, hint. I'm just saying! Of course, we all have to remember to take this with the requisite datamining disclaimer: just because it's been found in the PTR files doesn't mean it will make it to live. I really hope it does, though, because I'm always happy to grab more mounts! Edit: Thanks to all who have pointed out that this may very well be the participation reward for the Hearthstone beta. This is what I get for not rereading the Hearthstone FAQ before submitting a post!
The Soapbox: You can't go back again
Returning to an old MMO love is a tradition for us vets, isn't it? I see people doing it a lot, and I'm certainly not immune to giving in to these whims. It usually starts out mild: hearing a friend talk about the game, remembering a good time you had in it, or seeing a big chunk of shiny new content come down the pike. Suddenly you've signed up again and logging in like you never left. It feels so familiar. It feels so alien. And that's when you realize: You really can't go back again. It's a dreadful realization, one that makes you lunge for the clock and attempt to turn back time with a sheer force of will. Stages of grief set in: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Sometimes you work in "snack food binge" in there as well. Why, you wonder, can't this be just like last time? It's a game, so why can't you recapture the same magic?
All Things Azeroth interviews Hearthstone developers
Since the announcement of Hearthstone at PAX East, many developer interviews have been circulating (including our own!). This week the All Things Azeroth podcast featured Hearthstone production director Jason Chayes and game designer Ben Brode, and there are a few interesting tidbits to take away from the interview that you might not have heard before. In particular, they detail an example of the types of fun cards they're developing to keep gamers on their toes. The example they discuss is King Mukla. You might be familiar with King Mukla if you've quested through The Cape of Stranglethorn, he's the enormous gorilla you need to kill to complete the Princess Poobah questline. In Hearthstone, Mukla is a cheap card to play that packs a punch, but the catch is that he'll give your opponent bananas which allows them some extra abilities, so you've got to think carefully about when you play him! Other topics covered during the interview include some more details about card crafting and the rationale behind it, the Golden Card upgrades, and some of the developers' thoughts on things like a client for Hearthstone in WoW to ease the pain on those long DPS dungeon queues. I must say, the more I hear about Hearthstone, the more fun it sounds. I've got high hopes for this game, not least because I think there's a good chance that it might be the magic video-game bullet that finally piques my boyfriend's interest. Hey, he's resisted all my attempts to get him into WoW so far, I'm getting desperate! You can check out All Thing's Azeroth's conversation with Jason Chayes and Ben Brode in episode 339. Happy listening!
TradeChat interviews two Hearthstone developers
A lot of the news lately has been about Hearthstone, the new digital card came announced by Blizzard at PAX. Our own intrepid Dawn Moore interviewed Eric Dodds and Jason Chayes about the game. But with such an interesting game on the horizon, who wouldn't be eager for more? TradeChat got the chance to interview Ben Brode and Jason Chayes about the game. Covering topics like the difference between purchased and earned packs, accessibility, and even the crafting system. It's a pretty cool interview and provides even more insight to the game. Check out the video and let TradeChat know what you think!
WRUP: Of dinosaurs and patches
No Hearthstone so we'll have to kill some time with a game that we all currently play. No, not Bioshock: Infinite. I'm talk about WoW, the dinosaurs, and that upcoming patch. I can't speak for anyone else, but any patch that gets me closers to laying a keg of beer upside Garrosh's oversized melon is a patch I like. By the way, does it bother anyone else that the orc looks so smug picking on the gnome? I always thought orcs were kind of bullies anyway, but they don't need to laugh about it. It just looks mean.
The Queue: Sweet romance
Welcome back to The Queue, the daily Q&A column in which the WoW Insider team answers your questions about the World of Warcraft. Alex Ziebart will be your host today. Dating advice in The Queue? Seriously? Yep! @aspectofthedork as ked: if your significant other asks you to be "romantizzle," what is an appropriate response?
Roundup of Hearthstone blue posts from the last few days
Last week at PAX East Blizzard announced a new game to be released sometime this year: Hearthstone! I'm sure many of you have read a great deal about Hearthstone already, and WoW Insider's own Dawn Moore did a wonderful write up of her first impressions as well as an interview with Hearthstone developers Eric Dodds and Jason Chayes. For those of you who might be a bit out of the loop, Hearthstone is a collectible, digital card game where players can build decks and pit them against one another. It's set in the Warcraft universe and features many memorable characters from WoW as well as voice acting, spell effects, and other such bells and whistles that give it a fun look and feel. While there isn't an enormous amount of information available yet, we do know a few things so far, such as: Hearthstone will be free to play. You have the option of purchasing more cards if you like, but you can win those same cards via gameplay and don't have to spend a cent. The beta will begin this summer, and you can sign up to be a part of it. Hearthstone will be available for Windows, Mac, and iPad. Further platforms have yet to be announced. If you've been wondering where to go to get more information about Hearthstone, there is a new official Blizzard Hearthstone forum, as well as the PlayHearthstone official twitter feed and Facebook page - all great resources for information. Below the cut I've also compiled a number of the latest and greatest blue posts about the game, for your reading convenience. Oh and don't forget to check out the official FAQ as well, it is large and comprehensive. I haven't quoted it because it's far too big to do so. Now, on to the blue posts!
