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Blizzard's Free-to-Play 'Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft' Launches on Mac

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Apr 12, 2001
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Blizzard Entertainment's digital card game Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft has publicly launched on the Mac after a brief public beta period. The free-to-play collectible card game is set in the Warcraft universe, allowing players to compete with Magic-style decks in one-on-one fights via Battle.Net -- Blizzard's online gaming platform -- or against the computer.

Though it's only launching on Mac and PC today, Blizzard has promised iPhone and iPad versions of the game as well.
The Hearthstone beta is complete and we wanted to take a moment to thank all of our participants for their incredibly valuable feedback and support. If you haven't had the chance to jump into the game, now is the perfect time to check out the fast-paced strategy card game that's fun for everyone. If you're new to Hearthstone, getting started is simple: Just visit playhearthstone.com and click on the "Play Free Now" button. Once your download is finished, fire it up and click on the Hearthstone icon. Install Hearthstone, then hit the "Play" button and you'll be on your way.

As soon as you jump in you'll challenge iconic Warcraft characters, including the ferocious Hogger, the mischievous Millhouse Manastorm, and the wise Lorewalker Cho. As you progress through these introductory missions, you'll hone your card-slinging skills in preparation for a climactic battle against Illidan Stormrage! You are not prepared . . . for this much fun!
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System requirements are fairly generous, requiring an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, although Blizzard recommends an Intel Core i3 or better, along with an NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M or ATI Radeon HD 5670 or better graphics card.

Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is a free download from Blizzard's website.

Article Link: Blizzard's Free-to-Play 'Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft' Launches on Mac
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/03/11/blizzard-hearthstone-launches/
the8thark

the8thark

macrumors 601
Apr 18, 2011
4,628
1,735
It's launched on OS X and Windows. And in the future Blizzard will put out iOS and Android clients of the app so it'll be tablet playable too. Blizzard has not promise iPhone and iPad. They just said iOS and Android so far. After playing the game I don't think it'll get an iPhone release, only iPad.

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Switchfoot said:
FTP or IAP?
Click to expand...
Freemium. But you can play 100% free without buying any card packs (you can earn them) and without buying arena entries (you can earn those too). The game is more pay to grind less.
 
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Dookieman

macrumors 6502
Oct 12, 2009
390
67
the8thark said:
It's launched on OS X and Windows. And in the future Blizzard will put out iOS and Android clients of the app so it'll be tablet playable too. Blizzard has not promise iPhone and iPad. They just said iOS and Android so far. After playing the game I don't think it'll get an iPhone release, only iPad.

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Freemium. But you can play 100% free without buying any card packs (you can earn them) and without buying arena entries (you can earn those too). The game is more pay to grind less.
Click to expand...

They have stated an iPhone version will also be released, in addition to iPad.
 
Oppressed

Oppressed

macrumors 65816
Aug 15, 2010
1,265
10
I'm an experienced player that has been playing the beta since September so if you are looking for a friend add Oppressed#1555 to your friends list.

To answer some questions so far in the thread. This is F2P with IAP. Packs of 5 cards are 1.99 or less, but the same packs of cards can be earned just by playing the game naturally. You should on average earn a pack of cards every two days with a casual amount of play time.

Also you can be the best at this game (legend rank) without spending a penny. Many streamers on twitch.tv demonstrated this.

Lastly this WILL come to the iPad later this year. This has already been announced, and your game will transfer over from the Mac version.

Feel free to add me in game and I'll try to answer your questions.
 
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Decbaux

macrumors newbie
Aug 14, 2013
13
0
I'm also looking for more players for deck-testing, chat, etc. Decbaux#1963.

This game has been built from day 1 to be used on the iPad. It's going to be fantastic having a competitive game for it.

There have been countless arguments over Hearthstone being free to play or pay to win, the fact is that skillful players have shown repeatedly you can get to the highest rank (legendary) without spending a cent in the game.

For anyone coming from a traditional TCG, Hearthstone is massively cheaper, and also gives you the ability to take ANY 'useless' card, turn it to dust, and use that dust to craft the cards you need. It's a great system.
 
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bpcookson

bpcookson

macrumors 6502
Apr 6, 2012
484
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I've been playing the beta casually and I've got to say its a good deal of fun. You can definitely play for free, but it is very tempting to spend cash on card packs to get into the game quicker. That being said, you're given a reasonably large number of "basic" cards for free and can earn more class specific basic cards by practicing with a given class.

It's already been said that a card pack has 5 cards, and these are considered "expert" cards. Each one has a rarity denoted by the color of the gem in the center of the card: common, rare, epic, or legendary. Those basic cards I mentioned earlier have no center gem. A pack costs 100 gold or you can get 2 packs for $2.99 (real cash). The guy who said you can buy a pack for $1.99 is wrong; that price point is reserved for a single entry into the Arena... but I'm not going to get into Arena here. You can look it up.

There are three primary means of accruing gold:
1. You get 10 gold for every 3 wins against a real person.
2. You are given a single random quest every day that will award either 40, 60, or 100 gold upon completion, depending on the quest.
3. There are hidden quests, sort of like achievements, that award as much as 300 gold when completed.

Grinding can be slow but it's enjoyable and you're learning along the way. That being said, I've spent some real cash. :D
 
ArtOfWarfare

ArtOfWarfare

macrumors G3
Nov 26, 2007
9,559
6,059
Decbaux said:
For anyone coming from a traditional TCG, Hearthstone is massively cheaper, and also gives you the ability to take ANY 'useless' card, turn it to dust, and use that dust to craft the cards you need. It's a great system.
Click to expand...

Everyone I play Magic with just prints out and laminates their own decks - it's a lot cheaper than buying decks and ensures you don't end up with crap for cards.
 
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Decbaux

macrumors newbie
Aug 14, 2013
13
0
Yeah using proxies (printing a card instead of using the legitimate one) is fine at home but you cannot use those cards during any sort of competitive game.
 
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diogolg

macrumors member
Jun 14, 2012
87
6
bpcookson said:
I've been playing the beta casually and I've got to say its a good deal of fun. You can definitely play for free, but it is very tempting to spend cash on card packs to get into the game quicker. That being said, you're given a reasonably large number of "basic" cards for free and can earn more class specific basic cards by practicing with a given class.

It's already been said that a card pack has 5 cards, and these are considered "expert" cards. Each one has a rarity denoted by the color of the gem in the center of the card: common, rare, epic, or legendary. Those basic cards I mentioned earlier have no center gem. A pack costs 100 gold or you can get 2 packs for $2.99 (real cash). The guy who said you can buy a pack for $1.99 is wrong; that price point is reserved for a single entry into the Arena... but I'm not going to get into Arena here. You can look it up.

There are three primary means of accruing gold:
1. You get 10 gold for every 3 wins against a real person.
2. You are given a single random quest every day that will award either 40, 60, or 100 gold upon completion, depending on the quest.
3. There are hidden quests, sort of like achievements, that award as much as 300 gold when completed.

Grinding can be slow but it's enjoyable and you're learning along the way. That being said, I've spent some real cash. :D
Click to expand...

Well said... I'm aliso playing the game since january and it is a very fun game.
Actually, the other guy was kind of correct since you can buy a Arena Entrance for 1.99 and in every arena you will get at least one pack...
 
HiRez

HiRez

macrumors 603
Jan 6, 2004
6,250
2,576
Western US
Blizzard designed the game with large touch targets, the UI frankly looks kind of comically large on the desktop. However, that will be great for the iPad version, this is a game that should work really, really well on an iPad. There's a lot of dragging involved, which is a lot easier on a tablet than with a mouse IMO (and will be a lot more RSI-friendly).
 
C

Chazz08

Cancelled
Dec 4, 2012
560
105
Oppressed said:
I'm an experienced player that has been playing the beta since September so if you are looking for a friend add Oppressed#1555 to your friends list.

To answer some questions so far in the thread. This is F2P with IAP. Packs of 5 cards are 1.99 or less, but the same packs of cards can be earned just by playing the game naturally. You should on average earn a pack of cards every two days with a casual amount of play time.

Also you can be the best at this game (legend rank) without spending a penny. Many streamers on twitch.tv demonstrated this.

Lastly this WILL come to the iPad later this year. This has already been announced, and your game will transfer over from the Mac version.

Feel free to add me in game and I'll try to answer your questions.
Click to expand...

I've been playing the Beta as well, but it doesn't let me add friends or see the one's I have. I had a friend send me a friend request, and it wouldn't come through. I did see the request on Diablo though. I hope they fixed this.
 
bpcookson

bpcookson

macrumors 6502
Apr 6, 2012
484
90
MA
diogolg said:
Well said... I'm aliso playing the game since january and it is a very fun game.
Actually, the other guy was kind of correct since you can buy a Arena Entrance for 1.99 and in every arena you will get at least one pack...
Click to expand...

This is true. I stand corrected. And as a matter of fact, I recently drafted a lousy Hunter deck in the Arena and will soon find out what rewards I get for 0 wins and 3 losses...
 
S

sazivad

macrumors 6502
Jul 21, 2011
327
0
New Jersey
If anyone wants someone to play with, add me epsilon#1425. I'm not a fantastic player but I know the basics, and I've had the beta for a few months now.

Also, newbies can check out this.
 
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