Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft

 PC
User Score
5.7

Mixed or average reviews- based on 2373 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,045 out of 2373
  2. Mixed: 527 out of 2373
  3. Negative: 801 out of 2373

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Drain
    Aug 21, 2014
    5
    Hearthstone is... a troubled title, to say the least. On the first hand, you have a card game that's clearly better than all the rest, and well done. It gives a good first impression. It runs well. It looks well. All of the cards are recognizable from the WoW source material that they are drawn from. The UI is convenient. It doesn't do any stupid crap like having cards sidewaysor upsideHearthstone is... a troubled title, to say the least. On the first hand, you have a card game that's clearly better than all the rest, and well done. It gives a good first impression. It runs well. It looks well. All of the cards are recognizable from the WoW source material that they are drawn from. The UI is convenient. It doesn't do any stupid crap like having cards sidewaysor upside down like certain other games(No idea why they do that, quite stupid for a video game where 2 players are not sharing the same monitor). It even allows you to disenchant unwanted cards to build up a dust supply to eventually craft what you do want, something other games don't have. This is a real game seller. Those other crappy card games just expect you to lottery until you get what you want, to hell with copies or cards you don't want piling up.

    But on the other hand, you have a game that is being treated very poorly by its developer's. Not only is the balance in the game non existent because it focuses on a meta instead(Blizzard openly admits this)... but It's now over run with bots that they still refuse to do anything about. Bots are farming this game day and night now, so don't be surprised when you fight the same exact bot decks again and again. The bots have even infested the forum now, creating a slew of garbage spam threads every single night that persist until they're pushed off the next morning by real posters. Blizzard couldn't care less about these issues. They don't even use their own forum most of the time, opting instead to go to social networking sites such as Twitter or Facebook. That means that instead of caring about the users they have, they care only about drawing more in, which is the overall feel of the game. It's one big cash grab of a product, probably made solely to draw in revenue which they're now no doubt using on Heroes of the Storm instead of using it to improve Hearthstone.

    The competitive play for the game is in shambles because of it's non existent balance. Every player with a class runs the same exact build because, when you run a meta, that's how it works. They all run what is best, to hell with anything else. If you come into this expecting a balanced game... you're going to be gravely disappointed. Half of the cards in this game are garbage no one uses or has any reason to use, while a small fraction are best and auto slotted into every deck. Many players like myself(1k+ posts) have spent all year trying to talk Blizzard into fixing this game, including all problems I've pointed out here, and we've only gotten deaf ears turned to us. As usual with Blizzard games, the months roll by and little to no problems are actually addressed. They take the game down for entire days to apply no patches, or patch with 1 or 2 lines in the patch log that didn't fix anything people were trying to get them to look at for months on end.

    The biggest thing they did for the game this year was add Naxx, which basically just hands out a slew of cards very cheaply to anyone that wants them. Naxx is an all around bust in my opinion. It's too cheap to enter, too easy to beat, then has no reason to even replay it once you got all the cards. The only difficulty even in this "adventure" is Heroic Mode, which makes the bosses impossibly difficult without tailor made decks to beat them. And what's your reward for all the trouble? Nothing. You get nothing for beating every boss on Heroic except a card back no one cares about. It needed a middle ground, instead of having a "too easy" mode that hands out all the cards, and a "too hard" mode that gives you nothing for your trouble. Bust. Just a bust. Replayability would have helped, but there is none for it. After doing all of Naxx, I finally decided to retire. I've waited long enough for Blizzard to do something with this title, anything other than treating it like a lottery machine.

    I should point out the embarrassing Kel Thuzad voice acting. What used to be an evil Lich is now a clown cracking jokes for bored children at a birthday party. That sets the overall tone and disappointing nature of the game perfectly.

    But like all controversial games with nothing but biased fanboy or hater reviews; it's both over rated and under rated. Speaking from an objective point of view, it's not a bad game, it just isn't as great as it easily could have been if Blizzard cared at all about it. I'd like to point out that despite what a lot of ignorant people say, it is not P2W either. You can competitive with cheap decks; it's been proven time and time again. The debate about this has been beaten to death, with threads made nearly every day trying to convince you one way or the other. I've been competitive myself and never put in more than 10$. So I can't really thumbs this up or down; I'm just going to leave it up to you as I retire. In summery Hearthstone is a decent enough card game, but it's easy to be disappointed when you look at all the wasted potential.
    -Drain (Steam)    … Expand
  2. EclipseEx
    Mar 12, 2014
    7
    I usually play Hearthstone while waiting for other things to load or just when I want to play something short. The game is fairly casual there's no real pressure to win other than you can accumulate gold. I find it relaxing to just play without stressing out. One of the negative things is the fact that you can pay to dominate. Buying the $50 card pack will make your decks ridiculouslyI usually play Hearthstone while waiting for other things to load or just when I want to play something short. The game is fairly casual there's no real pressure to win other than you can accumulate gold. I find it relaxing to just play without stressing out. One of the negative things is the fact that you can pay to dominate. Buying the $50 card pack will make your decks ridiculously good. Also, like any card game luck has to do with how well you do which can get annoying or make you laugh hysterically when you get just the right cards to wreck your opponent. All in all worth checking out as it costs you nothing.… Expand
  3. WashedPotatoes
    Jul 21, 2022
    7
    can be played casually or hardcore, but what holds this game back is its totally pay to win. however, when your matched up against someone with even cards its a pretty fun turn based card game
  4. Mizuiro
    Apr 25, 2019
    5
    Is a well-made game (good graphics, good sound, good servers) but just PURE RANDOMNESS everywhere. I really hate it but still keep playing because is addictive like Heisenberg blue meth.

    As everyone says is p2w but not always because of randomness also is l2w (LUCKY TO WIN)
  5. Lifwerne
    Apr 28, 2021
    7
    Superfun and cozy game that relies too much on p2w and RNG.

    It's the only card game i've ever played and i've played it for years casually. Just how it's made is amazing - that playfulness and graphics, combined with how sharp it's gameplay is. With that said, it is a very expensive game to play and sadly it's not made with consumer in mind, but made to make money and thus most people    Superfun and cozy game that relies too much on p2w and RNG.

    It's the only card game i've ever played and i've played it for years casually. Just how it's made is amazing - that playfulness and graphics, combined with how sharp it's gameplay is. With that said, it is a very expensive game to play and sadly it's not made with consumer in mind, but made to make money and thus most people cannot have fun and play different decks if they want to be competiive without paying several hundred dollars a year. But if you can afford it, it's a fun game.

    +

    *Design
    *Art
    *Cozy-factor
    *Free to play (Haha, yeah right... im just joking)

    -

    * Expensive as hell
    * P2W to a certain extent. You have a to have a good deck to be competive and most of the good decks require you to buy cardpacks for real money, but when you have a good deck and faced with other good deck your skill and meta knowledge will determine if you rise in the ranks.
    * Not made with consumer in mind
    * Too many expensions released per year (for them to make more money).
    * RNG heavy    … Expand
  6. prussii
    Dec 31, 2020
    5
    I've played Hearthstone everyday since Beta up to the Boomsday Project expansion. I've bought couple pre-orders. In the early days of the game it was the best card game ever, with brilliant visuals, simple yet fun gameplay and cool setting in the WOW universe. BUT ever since the Witchwood the game began to be more and more repetitive, the grind was real, you couldn't keep up with the metaI've played Hearthstone everyday since Beta up to the Boomsday Project expansion. I've bought couple pre-orders. In the early days of the game it was the best card game ever, with brilliant visuals, simple yet fun gameplay and cool setting in the WOW universe. BUT ever since the Witchwood the game began to be more and more repetitive, the grind was real, you couldn't keep up with the meta without paying money. Playing Hearthstone became more of a chore to me. Every time when new expansions were announced I was thrilled to see new cards but then I read about the massive paywall behind the content. I'm ok with paying for actual quality content but paying about 60$ for every expansion, couple times a year is horrendous, that's the price of an AAA game you have to pay in a F2P card game. It is a good game if you want to play VERY casual and spend 2-3 hours a week on it, but I advise you not to get too invested in order not to waste a lot of your time and money. What a big waste of a good core game...… Expand
  7. jlcv91
    Oct 14, 2014
    6
    Lack of cards, and everyone just runs the same kind of decks later in the game! so its just a luck and count wich cards your opponent already used game!
  8. StarmanDX
    Apr 21, 2014
    6
    For starters, this game is an extremely simplified version of Magic: The Gathering. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since it brings in a bigger userbase, but I think I would enjoy the game more if it was just a little deeper. As such, that's not really what I'm docking many points for.

    What I am mostly docking points for is how pay-to-win the game is - easily the most so that I have    For starters, this game is an extremely simplified version of Magic: The Gathering. That's not necessarily a bad thing, since it brings in a bigger userbase, but I think I would enjoy the game more if it was just a little deeper. As such, that's not really what I'm docking many points for.

    What I am mostly docking points for is how pay-to-win the game is - easily the most so that I have ever played. Grinding for cards takes a long time, and you can't really compete without legendaries in Hearthstone. This wouldn't be that bad if the matchmaking system prevented such unequal matchups, but as a beginner you'll often be paired up with people who've spent money to acquire much better cards. Expect to spend some decent cash if you want to have a decent chance.    … Expand
  9. Amiga1200
    Dec 2, 2014
    5
    I previously scored this game much higher then now. The reason I lowered the score (7/10 previously) is because Blizzard continues to make the game much more pay to win and increasingly difficult for free to play gamers to break through. Basically with the actual trend on the horizon there is no way for a free to play gamer to do anything besides sitting in lower ranks and play highlyI previously scored this game much higher then now. The reason I lowered the score (7/10 previously) is because Blizzard continues to make the game much more pay to win and increasingly difficult for free to play gamers to break through. Basically with the actual trend on the horizon there is no way for a free to play gamer to do anything besides sitting in lower ranks and play highly unbalanced and frustrating matches. Why is that ?

    If you want to be competitive you need decks from different sets (Naxxranas, Expert and the new GvG). You need to spend 3500 gold for Naxx, about 6000 gold for expert packs and something like 4000 gold for the new expansion deck. Assuming that on average you get 50-60 gold daily it would take you several months of farming the gold while experiencing unpleasant and unbalanced matches where you have to face players that spend a lot of money on cards. It means that in the farming meantime (about half a year) they will launch yet another expansion that will leave free player even further behind (more money to farm whil you are still behind). It is impossible to catch up. That's what the game looks like. If you want to compete with other players you have to pay. I do not like the idea of games that are based on this model. There are better and actually free to play games where you do not see this money based match up because Hearthstone is all about money.

    This game is no longer for me as I prefer to support other gaming companies.    … Expand
  10. ireviewbadgames
    Aug 28, 2018
    5
    No one can say that Blizzard doesn't play to their strengths: fun, creative and very responsive user interface and aesthetics and cash-guzzling gameplay. You're not going to find anything spectacularly new or interesting in Hearthstone, but you will quickly learn that playing the game has it's price.

    Blizzard's balancing and rotation are all based around throwing out your cards every    No one can say that Blizzard doesn't play to their strengths: fun, creative and very responsive user interface and aesthetics and cash-guzzling gameplay. You're not going to find anything spectacularly new or interesting in Hearthstone, but you will quickly learn that playing the game has it's price.

    Blizzard's balancing and rotation are all based around throwing out your cards every year and throwing them money for their "new and better" cards. Unfortunately, you see a lot of whales (ie: desperate gamers that throw away $200 on virtual cards that can be taken away at any time) defending the game who have already fallen into the sunk cost fallacy.

    In short: big skip on Hearthstone unless you're a recently deposed middle-eastern aristocrat and have a few yachts to sell in order to fund your gaming habit. There are plenty of other free card games (MTG: Arena, TES: Legends, etc.) that are just as good. . . and you get to keep your arms and legs.    … Expand
  11. Tinhownage
    Apr 28, 2014
    5
    This game is good in theory.. Well done and with good features which make this game fun, but in practice this game is so much UNBALANCED.. One of the most unbalanced games i've ever seen, the combination of all decks together in the game-play makes this game a little bit annoying and so much boring and a real Pay to Win game in definition.
  12. Kosma
    Jul 14, 2014
    7
    Great little card game, needs way more frequent updates and new cards from Blizzard though because as is you will get burned out fast seeing the same cards and decks over and over.
  13. MisterShmi
    Mar 16, 2014
    5
    Being free, I can't complain too much. The game is certainly of high quality and well made, and fun for short relaxing sessions every now and again, but it gets old really fast, especially when you are playing against people who have the money to drop on overpowered cards. Its essentially a pay to win game, which is really unfortunate, because I WANT to like it really bad.
  14. ZoddTheImmortal
    Apr 27, 2014
    6
    The game itself is fun, but the grind is annoyingly slow, making it hard to keep me interested. You get 10 gold every THREE wins. It costs 100 gold to buy a pack of FIVE new cards. So every 30 wins, you get 5 new cards. I feel like I am playing with the same cards and against the same cards constantly, it just gets a bit boring and lacks the fun of building and customizing new decks, as IThe game itself is fun, but the grind is annoyingly slow, making it hard to keep me interested. You get 10 gold every THREE wins. It costs 100 gold to buy a pack of FIVE new cards. So every 30 wins, you get 5 new cards. I feel like I am playing with the same cards and against the same cards constantly, it just gets a bit boring and lacks the fun of building and customizing new decks, as I feel I have no options to choose from. Of course you can pay to win and just buy a ton of virtual booster packs for a pretty penny, but where's the fun in that? If you got 10 gold for every win, it'd probably keep me hooked, but as of now, I don't plan on playing it anymore.… Expand
  15. Firemind
    Mar 14, 2014
    6
    Hearthstone is a pretty much 'okay' game but really nothing more. The lack of many gameplay mechanics makes it a linear experience. After the first day when everything feels fresh and is fun I caught myself losing motivation playing it. That's not because it it a bad game there is just not enough variety like in other TCGs.
  16. mei_karma
    Mar 18, 2014
    6
    Rule is very simple and easy to learn. Even if you're a beginner of TCG, you can play this game excitingly with out "learning curve"

    Despite of many fascinating things. but there is a sort of limit to enjoy the game deeply. It depends on "luck" so much than any other card games. and its simpleness made the game less strategic. If you are a person who love TCG like "MTG" or "YUGIOH"    Rule is very simple and easy to learn. Even if you're a beginner of TCG, you can play this game excitingly with out "learning curve"

    Despite of many fascinating things. but there is a sort of limit to enjoy the game deeply. It depends on "luck" so much than any other card games. and its simpleness made the game less strategic.

    If you are a person who love TCG like "MTG" or "YUGIOH" , HearthStone might not able to satisfy you.    … Expand
  17. Blackdragon666
    Mar 19, 2014
    7
    Wonderful concept held down by the pay to win nature of the game.

    The only enjoyable the thing about this game is the Arena, which is pretty well balanced, and loads of fun.
  18. Wheresmyseme
    Apr 29, 2014
    6
    Fine but really it is too shallow to be called a tcg.
    Almost entirely RNG, can use skill but all of your work can be randomly negated by a single card most times.
    I still play it though...
    I hate UTH soooooo much!!!
  19. NecroMnemic
    Mar 16, 2014
    5
    Average game, that is fun for a couple of minutes but gets boring pretty fast. Also even for a TCG it's too depended on luck, making the games a coinflip. Most decisions are also without any alternative making the gameplay itself stale rather quickly.

    Blizzard keeps following the mantra "Easy to learn, easy to master", which again results in a game that just doesn't motivate playing    Average game, that is fun for a couple of minutes but gets boring pretty fast. Also even for a TCG it's too depended on luck, making the games a coinflip. Most decisions are also without any alternative making the gameplay itself stale rather quickly.

    Blizzard keeps following the mantra "Easy to learn, easy to master", which again results in a game that just doesn't motivate playing beyond the duration it's designed for - a couple of hours.    … Expand
  20. Lane_Steel
    Mar 22, 2014
    5
    How much you like Hearthstone is going to be dependant upon how casual you like you CCG experience to be, or to restate it, how favorably/unfavorably you view the word "accessibility" in reference to multiplayer games.

    It should be no surprise for a Blizzard entry to focus on producing a highly polished and user-friendly game that allows for players of all ages and skill levels to play.    How much you like Hearthstone is going to be dependant upon how casual you like you CCG experience to be, or to restate it, how favorably/unfavorably you view the word "accessibility" in reference to multiplayer games.

    It should be no surprise for a Blizzard entry to focus on producing a highly polished and user-friendly game that allows for players of all ages and skill levels to play. This is not the easy to learn, but hard to master template, but easy to play, easy to master, with a good deal of luck determining who will win barring glaring errors in judgement.

    It is simple fun, matches are relatively short, and there is a good amount of humorous references to keep WoW players entertained.

    Now if you are looking for something in terms of a CCG challenge to highlight your player's edge, this isn't the real thing.

    For self-proclaimed CCG hardcores - 5 or less (i.e you'll shortly uninstall it)
    For people new to CCG's and/or who want a stress-free, fun way to pass time - 8 or more    … Expand
  21. TitaniumDragon
    Mar 17, 2014
    5
    This game is thoroughly mediocre. Magic has massively more strategic depth than it has; this game is quite shallow, primarily due to its lack of interactivity. You act, then your opponent acts, then you go again, back and forth, and the inability to interact during your opponent's turn, while it is a reasonable decision from the point of view of speeding up the game, really makes the gameThis game is thoroughly mediocre. Magic has massively more strategic depth than it has; this game is quite shallow, primarily due to its lack of interactivity. You act, then your opponent acts, then you go again, back and forth, and the inability to interact during your opponent's turn, while it is a reasonable decision from the point of view of speeding up the game, really makes the game a lot more shallow.

    The net effect is that the game is more of a diversion than something which is actually all that deep; it tries to addict you with various Pavlovian methods, but in the end the lack of interactivity means that while playing against other players rather than the AI makes the game more difficult, it doesn't create a fundamental difference in how fun the game actually is to play, which is to say, a little, but not very.

    Not worth your time, and certainly not worth your money; if you like Magic, you'll find this a disappointingly shallow imitation which is a lot less fun; if you don't like Magic, then you certainly won't like a disappointingly shallow imitation. Yes, it is ostensibly free (and really, you can play it for free if you're patient enough), but the amount of time you spend on it in favor of something else is a real cost, and that time you'll never get back.    … Expand
  22. verglia
    Mar 28, 2014
    5
    Since it comes from blizzard and it's free,and they dumbed down all their games in last 5-10 years,you should try it.Cards are fun to play,game is pay to win,but i still had some fun with it.Only 500 cards,the game needs at least 2500 to be competitive,after some time it gets boring cause of this.If they reduce price for packs,or allow players to get more gold i'll gladly come back,but forSince it comes from blizzard and it's free,and they dumbed down all their games in last 5-10 years,you should try it.Cards are fun to play,game is pay to win,but i still had some fun with it.Only 500 cards,the game needs at least 2500 to be competitive,after some time it gets boring cause of this.If they reduce price for packs,or allow players to get more gold i'll gladly come back,but for now,it's just waste of time...… Expand
  23. MadclownJack
    Apr 21, 2015
    5
    Yeah, it's severely luck based, very much pay to win, and lacking in strategic value. But for casual gamers it's a nice time waster. Though if you're planning to get far ahead without months of grinding for cards, you're just fooling yourself. As with any P2W title, the game will give you enough line to get you hooked before it starts punishing you by pairing you up with paying customersYeah, it's severely luck based, very much pay to win, and lacking in strategic value. But for casual gamers it's a nice time waster. Though if you're planning to get far ahead without months of grinding for cards, you're just fooling yourself. As with any P2W title, the game will give you enough line to get you hooked before it starts punishing you by pairing you up with paying customers while whoring itself every step of the way. And to be frank, there's no logic in paying for cards either, unless the decks sold come with luck attached.… Expand
  24. vabulden
    Aug 17, 2015
    6
    This game isn't p2w, but it's rather pay to compete.

    You can play with basic decks (google them) and do fine. Hell, you can even win against some decks with legendaries. But you'll be limited to your cards, which (if you will not start paying for the boosters) will get pretty boring. The chance of win is based on: - deck - 80%. If you're not a pro player, you can use already made    This game isn't p2w, but it's rather pay to compete.

    You can play with basic decks (google them) and do fine. Hell, you can even win against some decks with legendaries. But you'll be limited to your cards, which (if you will not start paying for the boosters) will get pretty boring.

    The chance of win is based on:
    - deck - 80%. If you're not a pro player, you can use already made decks. You can have all epics, but if your deck isn't balanced, you're doomed.
    - rng - 10%. Matchmaking is ridiculous. As far as I know, it's based on K/D ratio - so sometimes you'll get cheap defeats, fighting people with better decks. Starting hand is also vital, but I rarely had times, when I failed just because I didn't get the cards that I needed.
    - actual skill - 10%. The gameplay is pretty simple. But at the same it's disappointing. Because both yours and opponents cards are random - you don't have to plan the game up to the end. When you're making decisions - you focus on the current situation and 2-3 steps ahead.

    I liked arena - it's the most 'fair' mode of the game. You and enemy have the same chances. Despite that building deck in the arena is the most random thing in the game.

    So I quit the game w/o spending a single dollar. I had some fun, but in the end it was a waste of time.
    Also, if you want to spend money, you must understand, that it doesn't guarantee anything. Even fighting bosses from adventures requires more than just basic cards.    … Expand
  25. SauceBox6
    Nov 26, 2022
    5
    10 - Masterpiece
    9 - Amazing
    8 - Great
    7 - Good
    6 - Okay
    5 - Mediocre
    4 - Bad
    3 - Awful
    2 - Painful
    1 - Unbearable
  26. vorph
    Apr 22, 2014
    6
    As fun it is, some decks are definitely overpowered compared to others. There are certain other drawbacks, like the game is not rewarding enough for your efforts, card gains are limited if you don't pay for anything. We know that Blizzard has a taste to charge people for extras but that system just blew up with D3 Auction House. I wonder why they still create a "pay to win" style gameAs fun it is, some decks are definitely overpowered compared to others. There are certain other drawbacks, like the game is not rewarding enough for your efforts, card gains are limited if you don't pay for anything. We know that Blizzard has a taste to charge people for extras but that system just blew up with D3 Auction House. I wonder why they still create a "pay to win" style game while their experiences should have urged them otherwise.… Expand
  27. Durge
    Apr 25, 2014
    5
    The game is definitely pay to win and quite a grind if you don't. It's frustrating to play a lengthy, evenly matched game and the other player starts dropping huge legendaries on you. I've bought about 30 packs with gold and rm. I've gotten 1 legendary out of all that, and not a useful one. So either other people are spending a fortune or I've got really bad luck. You'll also realize thatThe game is definitely pay to win and quite a grind if you don't. It's frustrating to play a lengthy, evenly matched game and the other player starts dropping huge legendaries on you. I've bought about 30 packs with gold and rm. I've gotten 1 legendary out of all that, and not a useful one. So either other people are spending a fortune or I've got really bad luck. You'll also realize that once you reach rank 18 it get's extremely difficult to advance unless you buy cards. The regular cards you earn through play just don't cut it.… Expand
  28. nedellis
    Mar 12, 2014
    6
    It's fun for just few hours until you realize that you need thousand of hours of grindfest to have decent cards.
    It's both for casual and enthusiast player, and this it's not a real advantage because it could be very frustrating at the beginning.
    Grindfest or credit card to have fun. Not for me thanks.
  29. effervescing
    Mar 15, 2014
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Hearthstone is the most deceptively balanced game i have ever played. Hearthstone starts you off by giving a simple and fun tutorial, then gradually puts you through the games own personal quests that reward you with points to buy card packs in the shop to further increase your card library. Then Hearthstone introduces online play against other players, ranked or not depending on your choice, then faces you against other players somewhat equivalent to your level. This is where the game begins to be even more fun then it is. Eventually as you progress though battles and levels you will soon start to realize that there are certain overpowered cards within the game that simply destroy every possible strategy conceived to the human mind just by paying a mana cost of seven or less, in which most games don't end until both yours and your foes mana count is at at least 9 or to the limit of 10. you will soon find yourself in an array of multiple poorly beginning hands which is drawn by random and cards drawn by your personally customized or game built deck, which is also randomly picked. It is only a matter of time until you figure out that you must pour actual dollar after dollar in the game just to buy the card packs to hope to get these overpowered cards and hope to win which really comes down to more luck than skill at a certain point. What the developers tried to do was well worth it in my opinion, from the hero getting points and equipment, to the automatic upgrading mana system, but that simply does not save the game from the anathmatizing and unmagnanimous balancing flaws from luck obtaining the cards from the bought card packs, or the cards drawn during the game.… Expand
  30. praXis
    May 5, 2014
    5
    Fun card game with gameplay that relies on luck as much as skill, and gives a massive advantage to those that are willing to pay for the most powerful cards or play for a huge number of hours and hope for a lucky drop. A very shrewd P2W business model that is no doubt benefiting Blizzard nicely. However, I view it as dishonest and exploitative that sours the play experience.
  31. whatever523
    Mar 4, 2016
    6
    Hearthstone can be entertaining, but after only a year they are out of ideas and are introducing power creep which absolutely sucks for casual players. Some of the cards are ridiculously overpowered and of course you can get all those awesome cards much faster when you pay money.
  32. Mrandom
    Mar 13, 2014
    7
    Hearhstone is pretty fun and has the potential to be one of the most popular multi-player games like Dota2 or LOL. Of course it is a CCG, but its professional art design and well-balanced gameplay really shows it is a Blizzard game, like the classic WOW, Starcraft and Warcraft 3.
    However, like what they said in the ads, the game is "deceptively" simple. Yeah, it looks simple, but it is    Hearhstone is pretty fun and has the potential to be one of the most popular multi-player games like Dota2 or LOL. Of course it is a CCG, but its professional art design and well-balanced gameplay really shows it is a Blizzard game, like the classic WOW, Starcraft and Warcraft 3.
    However, like what they said in the ads, the game is "deceptively" simple. Yeah, it looks simple, but it is not. It is extremely hard for new players who just enter the game. I started playing the game around closed Beta, even back then I lost 9 of my first 10 games. Now it is even worse. More and more players have large card collections, the newbies are gonna suffer for a long time. Of course it is possible to play extremely well with limited card collection like what Trump did, but you'll need to spend a huge amount of time in the Arena before being able to do so. For a new player, it is impossible to play well without spending money on overpriced cards. This is what they call "pay to win".
    The game is also pretty time consuming. Yeah each game is short indeed, but you'll need to spend hundreds of hours to master it.
    All of these above sounds pretty much like Dota, right? Unlike LOL or WOW, both Hearthstone and Dota has steep learning curves. However, unlike Dota, Hearthstone is too luck-based. Sometimes your just can't draw the right cards in the first few rounds, and can only watch your opponent plays all his/her combo. Sometimes you just keeps getting duplicated cards from opening decks. Too much time is wasted on bad luck. Players can rarely feel they deserve the bad draw/lose game. Even worse, some of these unlucky situations happened because of the bugs in game mechanic. e.g. Nat Pagle used to only have 25% chance to draw a card.
    All in all, do not think this is a simple and not-time-consuming game. It can be casual and pretty fun, but be prepared to spend time and money if you want to play well or try those legendary cards.    … Expand
  33. JustAThrowAway
    May 3, 2014
    5
    I played Magic: The Gathering for nearly 10 years when I was a bit younger, and decided to give Hearthstone a try. After 3 months or so, here's my opinion - make of it what you will: It's a mediocre card game with great art that locks off the best parts of the game to encourage you to spend money.

    There are 3 Game Modes (and no plans to implement more anytime soon - so says the Devs):    I played Magic: The Gathering for nearly 10 years when I was a bit younger, and decided to give Hearthstone a try. After 3 months or so, here's my opinion - make of it what you will: It's a mediocre card game with great art that locks off the best parts of the game to encourage you to spend money.

    There are 3 Game Modes (and no plans to implement more anytime soon - so says the Devs):

    Arena - Basic draft. Choose random cards to build a deck and face off against the same. Fun, good mental exercise. This mode requires 150 Gold or some cash to enter, though, and can't be played every day by Free players.

    Casual - Build a deck from your collection, face off against random people who've done the same. Good for testing out new ideas.

    Ranked - Build a deck from your collection, face off against random people of the same rank. Unfortunately, since you earn Gold in all 3 and there's no punishment for down-ranking (by instantly conceding) in "Ranked" play - that does mean that once you pop into the "real world" against more mature decks at Rank 20 ( >20 you're facing off against other newbies exclusively) you're likely to be pounded right into the ground from much more experienced players Farming newbies to get gold. This is a problem, and has remained unaddressed.

    The card diversity is severely lacking for having 9 Classes. At this time, with the Naxx adventure (which hasn't been released), the card library hovers around 420. In comparison, at the same point in its public life, MtG (Magic: the Gathering) had 850+ spread amongst 5 classes.

    The deck requirement is 30. No more, no less. When combined with the lack of card diversity, the 30 card deck makes for quick games - but also very, very predictable decks (and thus, predictable games) in Ranked play as each class strives to be the most efficient with its deck slots.

    The efficiency issue involves the pretty notorious "Legendary" issue. That is, the card ranks (Common / Uncommon / Rare / Epic / Legendary / Class-specific) don't always reflect how efficient they are, but in general Legendaries are better than their same-costing counterparts. They either affect the game in a major way, have a high Attack/Defense stat for their cost, or usually both. Thus, for a given card slot, a Legendary is usually the most efficient card you can have. Legendary cards are not a "WIN" button, and mature decks without them can usually hand 2-3 Legendaries without much fuss - but at higher ranks the efficiency problem really becomes apparent when both decks are mature and both people are excellent at their decision making.

    This wouldn't be such an issue if the Crafting mechanics were better (or you could just outright buy specific cards - you can't), but as-is to Craft a Legendary/Epic/Rare/Uncommon it takes 1600/400/100/40. The same cards would also "Disenchant" for 400/100/20/5 Dust, and you cannot trade cards with other players.

    So at this point you're probably wondering why I say it's "Mediocre" instead of "Terrible". Where are the up-sides?

    Well, the art (as par for the course for Blizzard) is great. It's enjoyable to "play" for your senses.

    The game is simple enough to pick up and play. Within a few days you've seen every ability, and can look through all the cards via the Crafting Mode anytime you want.

    For the most part, it's pretty balanced at the newbie ranks until probably Rank 10 or so - barring the Newbie Farmers.

    Unfortunately those don't make it a good game. A visually appealing game, yes. An initially fun game, yes. But it's not a deep game. It's not something that REMAINS fun unless you pay for it. And you're probably saying, "Well it's F2P anyways - what's wrong with paying for it?"

    Well, in theory, nothing. I'm sure there are people out there who've spent $100 on packs and gotten $100 worth of enjoyment out of Hearthstone. For me, though, it always feels like Hearthstone is reaching towards my wallet every time I open it, and for a surprisingly shallow card game... it's just sort of the icing on the cake that has made me lose interesting. Not when they could simply charge for cosmetic changes (ask Valve how profitable that is) or permanent access to special modes of play.

    Don't let the pretty visuals and Blizzard name fool you. This is a fairly shallow card game draped over a cash shop. It might be worth paying for in two years or so at the rate Blizzard is going, but not at the moment. Not to me.    … Expand
  34. Ceridwen8
    Jun 1, 2014
    5
    Ok, given the ridiculously high 'critic review' score, I *have* to review this one. I dutifully played this with my son - and it's painfully bad. I cannot imagine who anyone could give it more than 5, if they were in a generous mood.

    First, you have a weirdly limited set of cards (which you can buy with real money, basically - that's nothing new, but let's not say Blizzard is above    Ok, given the ridiculously high 'critic review' score, I *have* to review this one. I dutifully played this with my son - and it's painfully bad. I cannot imagine who anyone could give it more than 5, if they were in a generous mood.

    First, you have a weirdly limited set of cards (which you can buy with real money, basically - that's nothing new, but let's not say Blizzard is above micro-transactions anymore, please) You have the potential for class strategy, which is undercut by the limited nature of the game mechanics.

    It's a lesser Magic/ Yu-Gi-Oh, without the strategy & fun. I guess it's there to be simple & mindless, and it's dependent on PvP. You can't play against friends (for progress - you can for - no good reason)

    It's just annoying to see critics lauding something that *really* doesn't deserve it.    … Expand
  35. blubberguts
    Mar 19, 2014
    7
    At lot of fun ..at first. Especially against the computer players.

    Then you reach PVP and it's pay to win. I remember I had cards that cost 2 mana and did 1 damage .. others had cards that cost 1 mana and did 3 damage. No matter what you do, unless you pay, you aren't going to win. It's a shame. Graphically, I really like the game, it has loads of style. The cards look good, the    At lot of fun ..at first. Especially against the computer players.

    Then you reach PVP and it's pay to win. I remember I had cards that cost 2 mana and did 1 damage .. others had cards that cost 1 mana and did 3 damage. No matter what you do, unless you pay, you aren't going to win.

    It's a shame. Graphically, I really like the game, it has loads of style. The cards look good, the colours are clear and bright, the animations are great. The voices and sounds are good too. As you'd expect, coming from the creators of WOW, it's a work of quality. I really enjoyed playing ..until I got to PVP.

    I have a suggestion for Blizzard. TWO sets of leagues. One league for "skill" players only. There are no cards or advantages you can buy, the winner is determined by sheer skill (And luck in the draw, of course, but that averages out the more games you play.) This will draw in a huge number of people and generate buzz.

    The other league for players who bought cards.

    Both sets of gamers could be happy!

    If you do this, I will go back to playing again. Until then, no more for me.

    7/10 for this. Would have been 9 or 10, except for the pay-to-win. Apart from that, it's an excellent game. I recommend people try it anyway; until you get to pvp, it's the best card battle game I ever played.    … Expand
  36. cpyz
    May 7, 2014
    5
    This game is quite fun to play at first,but after a few days playing,it just turn out to be a really shallow game.Strategics are useless in playing hearthstone,as the card drawing system is COMPLETELY random.So, no matter how much time and effort spent in building your deck,it just comes down to luck when you are actually playing.

    It is not a typical P2W game as you must invest a vast    This game is quite fun to play at first,but after a few days playing,it just turn out to be a really shallow game.Strategics are useless in playing hearthstone,as the card drawing system is COMPLETELY random.So, no matter how much time and effort spent in building your deck,it just comes down to luck when you are actually playing.

    It is not a typical P2W game as you must invest a vast amount of money to make the difference and i believe only a minority of players are willing to pay a lump sum.This is because this game is based purely on luck.You can have 3 LEGENDARY cards, but they may all be lying right at the bottom of your deck so you may not even see them when you are being crushed and gang bang by your opponents minion.Based on my own experience(i have 1 lvl 16 hero and 5 other >lvl 10 heroes),players with legendary cards are very rare,only about 1 in 10 players possess legendary cards.

    What makes this card game bad is the lack of strategies,all you need is LUCK LUCK LUCK.Anyway, i think this is a fixable problem and Blizzard should make modifications to its game-playing mechanisms,or many players will leave this game after a few weeks of playing as it is getting boring.

    I really hope that Blizzard can make some improvements because this can be one of the best online CCG.I am not giving it a negative score just because the graphics and gameplay are really nice.The cards are also well-designed.    … Expand
  37. Iluvatar21
    May 20, 2014
    7
    HOW I RATE: 10-9 score: perfect or near-perfect don't exist; 8 score: one of the best games ever. Top score; 7-6 score: great but not one of the best; 5-below score: serious flaws.
    ===========
    An awesome card game. Warcraft universe. Gets boring eventually.
  38. MikeMaximus
    Apr 24, 2014
    7
    Hearthstone is a fun card game to play every few days, complete any daily quests you have built up and earn a few new cards. If you want something hardcore to spend thousands of hours on i'd look elsewhere, unless of course you wanna spend a ton of money buying card packs.

    I'd call it Magic: The Gathering lite, it has enough depth to keep it interesting and strategic but also simple    Hearthstone is a fun card game to play every few days, complete any daily quests you have built up and earn a few new cards. If you want something hardcore to spend thousands of hours on i'd look elsewhere, unless of course you wanna spend a ton of money buying card packs.

    I'd call it Magic: The Gathering lite, it has enough depth to keep it interesting and strategic but also simple enough to keep the rounds quick and easy to play. It's actually quite a feat and they should be proud of it. The lack of a standard chat interface during matches is also genius, you can communicate via simple emotes and that's all. This keeps matches quick and clean with a lack of what would likely be useless or offensive chatter that is standard in most competitive online games.

    Understandably it has issues with balance as ALL these types of games do, but Blizzard has never really been good with balance. That alone for me doesn't make it viable to spend a dime on it or compete in ranked matches.    … Expand
  39. Not_Disclosed
    Mar 18, 2014
    7
    The game is very deceptive. First of all, do not expect to be competitive in ranked play for a long time, unless you want to spend real money. If you do spend money, you will not be truly competitive anyway, but you will manage to get some wins just because you have better cards.

    For a long time, I thought that cards are everything, but actually there is quite a lot of strategy    The game is very deceptive. First of all, do not expect to be competitive in ranked play for a long time, unless you want to spend real money. If you do spend money, you will not be truly competitive anyway, but you will manage to get some wins just because you have better cards.

    For a long time, I thought that cards are everything, but actually there is quite a lot of strategy involved. As a new player, you will need to do daily quests. I do not recommend playing any more than for dailies, as when you play against much better decks, you will feel that it is unfair and pay - for - win. As such, I recommend not buying the decks straight away, but spend the gold in arena. Yes, you will be losing a lot at the beginning - but also you will learn to play and to choose cards. Make a spreadsheet of your arena wins so you can see your progress in time. Initially you will think that 'it is all luck' and that 'opponents were lucky at draw and play' but after some time (a couple of months for me) you will realise that actually how you play and way you choose cards affect your performance in Arena immensely, and that having few very good cards in a badly chosen deck does not make wonders. To play constructed competitively, as long as you do not want to pay, expect 3-6 months of doing dailies and spending your gold on Arena runs.

    Constructed has many issues currently, but the game is getting better, and even though maybe at the moment is not as good as competition, given Blizzard determination (and pushing it as an e-sport) it is very likely to be the best in maybe a year time.

    However, building your skill to be competitive in the game (and Arena) will take time. You can buy your way to be competitive early, but with all the cards you can imagine, you will still not achieve top ranks without skill.    … Expand
  40. Magnethead
    May 26, 2016
    5
    The thing to understand about Hearthstone is that it's a very, very casual game. The existence of a pro circuit should not be taken as an indication of a skill-demanding gameplay but as as an expression of its wide-ranging popularity and its suitability for streaming. It's most accurately compared to a game like Texas Hold'em Poker in the sense that it requires skill to play accurately,The thing to understand about Hearthstone is that it's a very, very casual game. The existence of a pro circuit should not be taken as an indication of a skill-demanding gameplay but as as an expression of its wide-ranging popularity and its suitability for streaming. It's most accurately compared to a game like Texas Hold'em Poker in the sense that it requires skill to play accurately, but in a lot of scenarios skill won't matter tremendously due to huge variance. This doesn't make Hearthstone a bad game, just a very casual game.

    My main objections are:
    1. The direction the game is taking - towards less diverse, simpler gameplay and deck-building. Steadily heading deeper into mediocrity.

    2. How extremely greedy the game is and that's where a new player needs to pay attention. If you want all the cards in Hearthstone, an average estimate of around 600$ is by no means exaggerated. If you want the cards for the current Standard format, you can maybe cut it down to around 450$. That's extreme and your expenses won't end there, you should expect something like 50$ a year at least from that point on. Now, you don't need all cards but if you want to have a few decent decks, you're probably still looking at 150-200$.

    Hearthstone is suited for people who'd like a very casual card-game to have a bit of fun with and for whom money isn't really an object. If you liked Magic the Gathering or strategical games in general, you'd be better off looking at games like Faeria or Hex or something like that (or Magic the Gathering Online if a clunky interface doesn't bother you).

    In the end, Hearthstone remains a mediocre game because of its insistent pandering to the absolutely lowest denominator and its terrible greed, but the game isn't bad as such. The interface is smooth, some ideas are fun and there have been interesting decks in the meta at times (just too rarely). In the end, however, the game aims for and accurately hits mediocrity.    … Expand
  41. aza113
    May 27, 2014
    7
    Lets get the Pay2Win out of the way first. is it? well yes? is that a problem? not really, this game is different to other f2p. this is a card game, and well like traditional card games, it is pay to win, the more cards you draw the better, that's just how they work, nothing wrong with that, although id preferred a trading system (hard to abuse -proof it though), plus if you want, youLets get the Pay2Win out of the way first. is it? well yes? is that a problem? not really, this game is different to other f2p. this is a card game, and well like traditional card games, it is pay to win, the more cards you draw the better, that's just how they work, nothing wrong with that, although id preferred a trading system (hard to abuse -proof it though), plus if you want, you don't need to spend a single cent on it, you ll eventually earn enough points to buy all the cards. eventually.......

    The reason I didn't give this game a higher score is because the lack of depth, only (really, ranked and casual is one mode) 2 modes and not much is gained from ranking up, I do believe they are adding stuff in so, that's ok. But because it is only 30cards per deck, luck of the draw plays way too much in the games for it to be taken seriously, yes you can build a deck strategically but you cant really get away from luck, luck just has too much of a percentage in the games. So many times I have drawn 5 spell cards in a row with no minions to play even though I only have 8 spell cards in total. im not sure how luck's influence can be reduced, but it needs to be looked at, maybe a 50card deck can help smooth it out? not sure    … Expand
  42. Kislen
    Aug 12, 2015
    5
    The gameplay is fun, the visuals, sounds and matches are enjoyable, tavern brawl brings much needed variation and enjoyment, however, the costly aspect of the game's extremely unforgiving free vs pay model can't be overlooked.

    You must pay, or you will suffer at the hands of players who did. I caved and spent over $200 on top of playing for over 500 hours, and I'm still behind the    The gameplay is fun, the visuals, sounds and matches are enjoyable, tavern brawl brings much needed variation and enjoyment, however, the costly aspect of the game's extremely unforgiving free vs pay model can't be overlooked.

    You must pay, or you will suffer at the hands of players who did. I caved and spent over $200 on top of playing for over 500 hours, and I'm still behind the curve. Be warned!

    The devs' philosophy on game balance is one of the most atrocious models I've ever seen in the history of gaming: "we won't balance anything, we'll just sell you more new cards." The lead dev, Ben Brode, stated they don't want to fix broken under or overpowered cards, but instead, just introduce new ones, obviously, to keep feeding the cash machine.

    This is a solid, great game, mired horribly by it's pay model.    … Expand
  43. Crescendo
    Mar 19, 2014
    6
    I've played the game since early beta - if you're searching for quick and fun matches without having to go into the think tank a lot this is for you. It's a pretty dumbed down TCG with WAY too much focus on pure luck for my tastes - but I still play it once in a while. To be honest, the Arena is the only thing in this game worth your while, and even that features an immense amount of luckI've played the game since early beta - if you're searching for quick and fun matches without having to go into the think tank a lot this is for you. It's a pretty dumbed down TCG with WAY too much focus on pure luck for my tastes - but I still play it once in a while. To be honest, the Arena is the only thing in this game worth your while, and even that features an immense amount of luck to get a good draft pool. Still, I can see the people who enjoy blizzard games as of late enjoy this one too.… Expand
  44. FinDefaulted
    Jul 2, 2016
    6
    I used to play this when it was relatively new and there weren't any expansions yet. Lot's of fun and it can still be, but it has turned into a pay to win game... which you could say that all card games are, but this one is ridiculous. I tried ranked and kept losing to combos that required a lot more rare cards than a few free booster packs could give.

    For comparison, when this was new,    I used to play this when it was relatively new and there weren't any expansions yet. Lot's of fun and it can still be, but it has turned into a pay to win game... which you could say that all card games are, but this one is ridiculous. I tried ranked and kept losing to combos that required a lot more rare cards than a few free booster packs could give.

    For comparison, when this was new, I reached ranked level 14-16 very easily without really modifying my deck. Now I kept losing matches and barely reached 22.    … Expand
  45. Steve101
    Jun 9, 2014
    7
    Hearthstone is a decent CCG, and the game can be a good pickup if you are willing to put large amounts of time into it. For all the people claiming the game is pay to win, it is and it isn't You can do decently in both constructed and ranked with decks using only basic cards. And some of the strongest cards, like the chill wind yeti, a free and accessible from the beginning of the game.Hearthstone is a decent CCG, and the game can be a good pickup if you are willing to put large amounts of time into it. For all the people claiming the game is pay to win, it is and it isn't You can do decently in both constructed and ranked with decks using only basic cards. And some of the strongest cards, like the chill wind yeti, a free and accessible from the beginning of the game. Though the Epic and Legendary cards you can get from spending lots of money are quite strong, i'd argue its more grind to win than pay to win
    However, if you intend to play this game more than causally, you may and up frustrated. The biggest issue hearthstone has is that 90% of the game is based on RNG. You can have all the best cards in you deck and still lose flat out because of a bad draw. Due to this, most of the stronger cards are merely based on card draw. Most of the time, the game will come down to who can draw the better card first, making the game frustrating, especially in situations where it appears you would have won.
    TLDR; Hearthstone isn't Pay to win, its flip a coin and hope you win. While a couple of games or arena runs here and there can be entertaining, but becoming dedicated to it will likely leave you frustrated    … Expand
  46. Dartflght
    Apr 21, 2014
    6
    When i first played this game on gamescom 2013 i could not imagine anything bad considering this game. It was something new, I liked the style and graphics and there was finally a game by blizzard for casual gamers. Even though I think its quiet comprehensible to say that this game is, at least in some degree, pay to win I really liked the Beta-Version of the game. But the new ranked-matchWhen i first played this game on gamescom 2013 i could not imagine anything bad considering this game. It was something new, I liked the style and graphics and there was finally a game by blizzard for casual gamers. Even though I think its quiet comprehensible to say that this game is, at least in some degree, pay to win I really liked the Beta-Version of the game. But the new ranked-match system changed my opinion.
    The new system works against every casual player! The new system resets your rank on a monthly base... If you are a casual gamer like me, you play lets say 5 games a week. If you win 50% you end up on rank 16/25. Nothing to be proud of in my opinion. And then ... reset ... start AGAIN from rank 25. But luckily there is the arena mode as option... I could say. But it is expensive as hell. In order to purchase one arena run you need 150 gold. You get 10 gold for 3 wins. Lets do a little math 20 games a month 50% win ratio = 4,5 month playing to purchase 1 arena run ... are you kidding?
    To be fair there this another way to get gold. via daily quests. Those will gain you about 50 gold. But again, if the objective of this quest is: win 5 games with warrior or priest, and you never played those classes because you stick to only one.. there is no reason for me to even try to reach that.
    All in all, I think it can be quiet a fun game but just as long as you are willing to pay real money for arena runs.    … Expand
  47. Gloin
    Jul 16, 2014
    7
    Good Game. But it as the limit of a pay to win with to optimized deck. Really strategic and fun just need a little adjustment on some deck that change the game flow and kill hero in one turn with 3 card. Arena mode that prevent the player to have a far too optimized deck is really fun. The game is really focused on draw control not being a bad thing but can really be a pain when on a totalGood Game. But it as the limit of a pay to win with to optimized deck. Really strategic and fun just need a little adjustment on some deck that change the game flow and kill hero in one turn with 3 card. Arena mode that prevent the player to have a far too optimized deck is really fun. The game is really focused on draw control not being a bad thing but can really be a pain when on a total unlucky game.… Expand
  48. Fixxed
    Apr 4, 2014
    6
    Hearthstone is basically, a pretty and casual ccg. It is a game that thrives on luck and unexprienced tcg players. It lives of its warcraft lore and art and the fact that alot of blizzard's clients will log onto it everyonce in a while (since it is apparently free).

    Negative points? The game is not a tcg since there is no trading. The game is extremely unbalanced, with creatures not    Hearthstone is basically, a pretty and casual ccg. It is a game that thrives on luck and unexprienced tcg players. It lives of its warcraft lore and art and the fact that alot of blizzard's clients will log onto it everyonce in a while (since it is apparently free).

    Negative points? The game is not a tcg since there is no trading. The game is extremely unbalanced, with creatures not following an exact mana to stats pattern hence rendering some stronger than others (for the same cost). The game is 75% luck thus making it casual and not competitive (at all). It is not free to play since free cards have a really small array of effects limiting players to just a couple of strategies per deck. Mechanics linear and straightforward (really not much thinking, got the mana? use it)

    And last but not least, it suffers heavily of the four negative tcg points, 1 bad first hand system, 2 overwhelming, 3 spell control/spell spam and 4. extreme luck based.

    Conclusion. If you never played a tcg or is new or unexperienced to tcgs/ccgs... play the game, since its simple, pretty and you will have a chance of winning an experienced hardcore tcger (long live lucky based tcgs)
    If with time or if you already are a hardcore tcger, well accustomed to magic and other competitive tcgs, then... play this game casually, for if you try it competitively you will only get yourself frustrated or disappointed with the total lack of strategic elements you are used to.    … Expand
  49. SneezeJunky
    Jul 20, 2014
    6
    Fun casual game. Just sad that they made it possible to buy cards for real money.

    Pros:

    - Fun card game
    - Free 2 play
    - Warcraft universe

    Cons

    - You can pay to get more cards
    - DLC's cost a hell of alot to buy (But they can be bought with in-game gold, will just take alot of time to get)
    - Gets boring after a while
  50. Exga
    Sep 27, 2014
    6
    The entire game is well balanced. You can feel that the game depends on microtransaction, but it doesn't affect the game in a negative way (at least I have noticed). The only bad thing I have to say about the game, is the bugs. There are some bugs that ruin the entire experience. I was playing a game recently and I was about to win. I waited for more than a minute. So I just conceded, butThe entire game is well balanced. You can feel that the game depends on microtransaction, but it doesn't affect the game in a negative way (at least I have noticed). The only bad thing I have to say about the game, is the bugs. There are some bugs that ruin the entire experience. I was playing a game recently and I was about to win. I waited for more than a minute. So I just conceded, but just as I pressed the button. The game resumed, and I lost, even though I would have won, when it was my turn again.… Expand
  51. 21grams
    Jul 24, 2014
    5
    It's nicely polished card game and can be extremely fun due to ridiculous combo plays and godlike RNG. However there are some issues with this game:

    1) Business model - it may look like a fair f2p game, but believe me, soon you will see how long it takes to get all the cards you need to play at competitive level. If you are beginner it's just p2w game. Until you learn how to play you    It's nicely polished card game and can be extremely fun due to ridiculous combo plays and godlike RNG. However there are some issues with this game:

    1) Business model - it may look like a fair f2p game, but believe me, soon you will see how long it takes to get all the cards you need to play at competitive level. If you are beginner it's just p2w game. Until you learn how to play you will lack gold for arena and lack cards for ranked games.

    I'd rather pay set amount of money for the game and have equal conditions right from the start. It kinda works that way with recent expansion, but hey, if you are new, you still need those vanilla cards.

    2) Only two game modes - arena and ranked (well there is casual normal mode but it's just regular 1vs1 with no incentive to play it).

    3) Ranked system is kind off dull and too simplistic. You either get a star or loose a star - to climb or fall in ranks. What's more, there are only few decks with obviously specific legendary (or high rarity cards) that really work in higher ranks, so in the end - you face same decks over and over. So wins the one with better RNG, or one whose deck works better against opponents deck. After a while it becomes very tedious.

    4) Lack of skill needed. You learn how the game works and what "abilities" cards have, you learn what cards can be played at which turn (just in case to play around) and pretty much it. Then it's all about better card draw.

    5) Unbalanced cards. There are some insanely overpowered cards with insane value (absolute must have cards) and there are some ridiculous one trick pony combos. You can simply beat your opponent in 1 turn down from full HP.

    Overall it lacks some more depth, more strategic aspect and more game modes.

    Sure you can check it out for free and it's more than enough to see yourself if this game and business model suits you. But for sure, if you consider to play it at competitive level, prepare for long grind of card packs or prepare to shake you wallet.    … Expand
  52. Adrijan123
    Jun 10, 2014
    7
    I'm going to keep this review short and straight to the point:
    -Graphics/Animation 8.5-Pretty good for a card game. The animations are smooth,nothing special or out of the ordinary, but ok,maybe even going to great.
    -Story / -I can't say anything about the story because I believe that in this particular card game, the story isn't even a main focus, so no score here. -Gameplay 7.5 -I    I'm going to keep this review short and straight to the point:
    -Graphics/Animation 8.5-Pretty good for a card game. The animations are smooth,nothing special or out of the ordinary, but ok,maybe even going to great.
    -Story / -I can't say anything about the story because I believe that in this particular card game, the story isn't even a main focus, so no score here.
    -Gameplay 7.5 -I don't have anything against the gameplay, in fact it seems to be pretty decent, however, the pay to win aspect has to be taken into consideration because a lot of people don't like it when games seem to be milking money from them, so the score has to go down. Apart from that, the gameplay seems to be decent, far from perfect, but decent.
    -Characters / -Again, this card game doesn't focus on any particular characters, so no score here.
    Music and Sound fx 6 -While the sound fx are ok,the music really isn't. It doesn't suit the genre, it's not utilized very well and I really have to take out a few points here.
    In the end, (8.5+7.5+6)/3 is somewhere around 7.1, and that's the score this game gets from me.    … Expand
  53. Isten
    Mar 18, 2014
    7
    I played they WOW TCG for the game, not the unlocks...and that makes me a minority as best I can tell.

    In either case, Hearthstone is a faithful if dumbed down version of the TCG.

    A Fun way to burn time (and money). It will never be competitive like MtG and that is okay. It fills a good niche.
  54. pickxarro
    Mar 26, 2014
    6
    Hearthstone is most likely the best card game at the moment but if you haven't played WoW as me, it doesnt open too well. I guess ill stay in moba games. 6/10
  55. frest
    Apr 2, 2014
    7
    Without a doubt this is one of the better implementations of the CCG in computer game form. It has the to-be-expected Blizzard interface polish, and looks to be designed for eventual deployment on mobile platforms as well. My criticisms are that it is socially sterile and a little claustrophobic at times. Playing with anonymous people is easy, fast, and painless. It is one of theWithout a doubt this is one of the better implementations of the CCG in computer game form. It has the to-be-expected Blizzard interface polish, and looks to be designed for eventual deployment on mobile platforms as well. My criticisms are that it is socially sterile and a little claustrophobic at times. Playing with anonymous people is easy, fast, and painless. It is one of the friendliest games I've ever played for deckbuilding, test-dueling random people without anxiety or judgment. Playing with friends (and sidestepping the matchmaking and arena) felt almost discouraged. Community feels non-existent ingame, probably due to aforementioned "mobile platform development," and communication is similarly clumsy (IM messages appear as popups and if used, the chat window actively obscures the playing area).… Expand
  56. bookreade
    Apr 17, 2014
    6
    This game is not bad, but not very good.Very casual, too much random.I play some, but now i just dnt want play it again.I dnt know why some people say that Hearthstone 9/10 or 10/10.Rly its not bad game, but 6/10 or 7/10 is max for casual card game like this
  57. Ailenoire
    Apr 24, 2014
    7
    Hearthstone's graphics and voice acting are great, the pace is quick, and the effects are satisfying. It has its fair share of flaws, though, most of which are inherent to card games. Good cards take time/money to acquire, and even with great cards and a high skill level, your wins and losses are determined almost entirely by luck alone. However, it's a lot of fun and has many differentHearthstone's graphics and voice acting are great, the pace is quick, and the effects are satisfying. It has its fair share of flaws, though, most of which are inherent to card games. Good cards take time/money to acquire, and even with great cards and a high skill level, your wins and losses are determined almost entirely by luck alone. However, it's a lot of fun and has many different ways to play, with several different classes and different kinds of decks that can be built. Hearthstone is a great game for Warcraft enthusiasts, and even for people just interested in a fun card game.… Expand
  58. Leanonme111
    May 2, 2014
    6
    Welp. This game is fun, but you can only buy 1 pack at a time, and if you want more you have to pay not too much money, but I don't like spending money (mostly because I'm broke) but yeah, this game is really fun,
    and has nice plot and characters, but you only get a little bit of coins per battle, but the CPU are always to good for me.
  59. Lancious
    May 17, 2014
    7
    It is a good game, but there are flaws. For example, the beginning is to easy! Of course it shows you the basics but it just wasnt fun. But the online is challenging and fun!
  60. IceeInChrg
    May 21, 2014
    7
    It's fun for a week or two but it's mostly just tedious like it's WoW predecessor. Strategy is limited and it's reasonably predictable what cards your opponents use due to class restrictions. A dumbed down version of the MTG computer/console games.
  61. MrBrioche
    Jul 7, 2014
    7
    Cant say that I hate it, cant say that I crave to play either. But hey it's free so give it a try and see it for your self, personally I enjoyed it for 2-3 hours.
  62. sapuramura
    May 29, 2014
    7
    Must play type of game. Very addictive and fun.
    But it has a problem, sometimes lucky players win and not smart and skilled ones, that downgrades the need of a sharp mind and actual skill.
  63. jafarx
    Jun 4, 2014
    5
    ok but dumb sometimes. this game be fun for me sometimes but such bollocks other times. to much luck i hate how lucky ppl get against me when i lose. no skill all luck but fun. i dont know
  64. FlippedFaith
    Jun 4, 2014
    5
    I give it a 5 rating after on going playing. Fun. Addictive. Nice touch of refreshing us with playing cards. The quest feature you earn is once a day, I do like that as well.

    Now let's get into the ugly. Bad chances. This game is off luck at the close ends of the straw. Whoever Hearthstone favors will win if it's coming down to the close matchup. Lets say you have 15 life left and your    I give it a 5 rating after on going playing. Fun. Addictive. Nice touch of refreshing us with playing cards. The quest feature you earn is once a day, I do like that as well.

    Now let's get into the ugly.
    Bad chances. This game is off luck at the close ends of the straw. Whoever Hearthstone favors will win if it's coming down to the close matchup. Lets say you have 15 life left and your poor foe has 9. Chances are he's going to get lucky with a few more rounds before it's over. They made that flaw into this card game. I don't care about the real money. I don't like how the game can overturn in a few rounds because they build a system into the mathematics. Come on! give me a break blizzard.    … Expand
  65. AlphaNapster
    Jun 4, 2014
    7
    At first the game is great, gets you hooked with very addicting gameplay.

    As you climb the ladder of ranked games with the very meager amount of coins allocated per day. It becomes more and more frustrating playing against the top tier decks with multiple legendary creatures. They are a company that is driven on money yes but it kind of makes the game unplayable unless you invest    At first the game is great, gets you hooked with very addicting gameplay.

    As you climb the ladder of ranked games with the very meager amount of coins allocated per day.
    It becomes more and more frustrating playing against the top tier decks with multiple legendary creatures.

    They are a company that is driven on money yes but it kind of makes the game unplayable unless you invest either massive amounts of time per day to get the 100 gold cap per day plus daily quest.

    Or massive amounts of money and test your luck on booster packs.

    Overall great gameplay but not for the casual gamer    … Expand
  66. TheNikoHero
    Jun 5, 2014
    5
    Overall then it is a great game, I just feel like that you have to be EXTREMLY lucky, to win a match if you don't get good cards at game starts

    The game itself has a amazing atsmophere and its just nice to play and just look at, but the overall functionality isn't that great when you played it from some hours (or at least I think so).
  67. QContinuum
    Jun 9, 2014
    7
    A pretty fun little card game. The various classes can make for wildly varying experiences and there are many different decks that can be successful, at least on the entry level where I play. The limited chat (really just emotes) means you don't have to watch people talk nonsense in the chat, and most players seem to act somewhat civil.

    I would have liked to see some form of single    A pretty fun little card game. The various classes can make for wildly varying experiences and there are many different decks that can be successful, at least on the entry level where I play. The limited chat (really just emotes) means you don't have to watch people talk nonsense in the chat, and most players seem to act somewhat civil.

    I would have liked to see some form of single player adventure mode, like in the Magic game that Microprose made around the late 90s, but Hearthstone is pretty good the way it is.    … Expand
  68. HBTB
    Jun 9, 2014
    7
    While a bit repetitive and annoyed me with some bugs during game play, the game certainly has a Warcraft tone to it, from making me rage since I lost a match or just making me laugh out loud, It was worth the play. It could have been better by adding more of a story, but overall, I'm glad I installed it onto my PC.
  69. lordad85
    Jul 11, 2014
    5
    Hearthstone is good fun for a while (2-3 weeks) and then you realize heartstone is more pay2play then pay2win. Its also a good amount pay2win allthough u can do good with relativly free decks.
    So after the first 2 weeks where u get a good amount of bonus cards from different beginner quests you have finally enough cards and gold to build your first ladder deck.
    So now is where it    Hearthstone is good fun for a while (2-3 weeks) and then you realize heartstone is more pay2play then pay2win. Its also a good amount pay2win allthough u can do good with relativly free decks.
    So after the first 2 weeks where u get a good amount of bonus cards from different beginner quests you have finally enough cards and gold to build your first ladder deck.

    So now is where it starts....
    U can either build a cheap Aggro hunter deck , a cheap Zoolock deck or a cheap midrange Shaman deck.
    From those 3 decks Zoolock is by far the most effective but also most boring.

    Thats why the ladder is full and overcrowded by Zoolocks .... Everybody complains about stupid no brainer Zoolocks in Ladder ... but well Its the only Deck u have Gold for as a "new" player !
    You can either play any hero you want using Basic cards and getting crushed every game or play Hunter/midrange Shaman or Zoo
    Thats your realistic choices

    Id love to play a Warrior, a Handlock or a Paladin ! But the game doesnt allow me since the cards absolutely necessary for these decks cost insane amount of dust which u can either get by playing 100rds of hours or Spending $$$

    Just to make it clear ..... a good Handlock,Paladin,Warrior or most of the other good decks start at 6000Dust ! You earn an average of ~ 50dust per hour playing heartstone ... this means u need to play/grind at least 120h stupid zoo ! to even be able to build 1 single competetive deck that isnt Zoo,Aggro Hunter or Midrange Shaman.

    Or instead of stupidly grinding 120h you can pay money in the blizzard shop !
    U need about 80card packs to have a somehow realtsic chance for enough dust/lucky drops to build good deck.... 80card packs equals the price of ---------- 100$ !--------------

    I did play Heartstone for 85h and additionally payed 19,99$ for 15card packs just due to the fact that i think a game is worth 20bucks...that i would have spent anyway if it wasnt free to play :)
    I just managed to create my first decent handlock deck.

    So now i can play Handlock and Zoo ......

    I am still miles away from having enough dust for a decent Warrior or a Miracle Rouge Deck.
    and it wil take either and endless grind to build those or i have to pay more money.

    85h of play 19,99$ spent and i can only access about 20-30% of the content ?

    No thank you
    I deinstalled it yesterday    … Expand
  70. deeman010
    Jul 29, 2014
    7
    Lol at all these 0 reviews....

    I'll address some of these points first. One, HS is a pay to win game (because you need cards to play well; but they do give you some free cards) because its a card game. All card games are pay to play MTG, Yu-gi-oh, etc... etc... You buy cards for all of them. I can't actually think of a better way to say it though, since its not p2w and its not really    Lol at all these 0 reviews....

    I'll address some of these points first. One, HS is a pay to win game (because you need cards to play well; but they do give you some free cards) because its a card game. All card games are pay to play MTG, Yu-gi-oh, etc... etc... You buy cards for all of them. I can't actually think of a better way to say it though, since its not p2w and its not really pay to play either.....

    Two, I agree with those who dislike the power that legendaries and epic cards have. If any HS person here can name me a card that can efficiently trade with the dragons then I'll concede this point. However, at the time of writing, there are no vanilla cards that are as powerful as the above. While people who do have the above are at an advantage, HS is in no way a p2w game as evidenced by one of, if not, the strongest decks in game being free.

    Three, RNG sucks but HS is a game of percentages. Its not about how many individual games you win but how high your win ratio is. So, yeah, RNGesus sucks.

    I gave HS a 6 because the music and design (not game design) is pretty good. I believe that there's plenty of room for growth and that the devs really need to capitalize on this.

    Arena is fun as hell to play. and those saying that ~50 gold a day is hard to get are treating the game way to seriously. Its something you play in between LoL or DotA matches.. Hell I've got 4k saved up right now and I only play 2x a week.    … Expand
  71. Kankerswek
    Nov 18, 2015
    7
    Worsed game out there sooo bad! purely luck drawn **** game, really only way to win more is to just spend all your money to these asses. srsly this is the worsed game in years from the most selfish **** company in the fackin world.
    Kanker is better than this game 4 real
  72. Ogie
    Aug 7, 2016
    7
    Hearthstone is quite good online card game. It has really good graphics, but the game system is quite simple I would say. What I hate most about HS is RNG, there are really a lot of cards which are based on random and that is not what is good for gameplay. I have not too much problem with buying stuff and I am not gonna cry like other that "HS is P2W", anyway the thing is that blizzard isHearthstone is quite good online card game. It has really good graphics, but the game system is quite simple I would say. What I hate most about HS is RNG, there are really a lot of cards which are based on random and that is not what is good for gameplay. I have not too much problem with buying stuff and I am not gonna cry like other that "HS is P2W", anyway the thing is that blizzard is recently making really many new expansions / adventures and the split up of competitive playing into 2 sections is just bad. Of course both are currently ranked, but the main focus will be now of course on the mode with just recent expansions / adventures so the older mode is going to be just background and people are forced to buy new stuff. I think HS has many pros and cos and as a result it is game that stands somewhere a bit beyond average.

    Graphic - 9
    Gameplay - 6
    Lasting Appeal - 7
    Execution - 6

    Overall - 7    … Expand
  73. ThecriticGoD
    Mar 7, 2016
    7
    The game is ok, it's kinda fun at once, specially if you haven't played any card game before, visually it's quite rich and it's great that you can find game in just 5 seconds. However, if you've played other card games before, this adds nothing new and if you didn't start playing at the very beginning it kinda becomes a "pay to win" as you need good cards to be able to rank up and decksThe game is ok, it's kinda fun at once, specially if you haven't played any card game before, visually it's quite rich and it's great that you can find game in just 5 seconds. However, if you've played other card games before, this adds nothing new and if you didn't start playing at the very beginning it kinda becomes a "pay to win" as you need good cards to be able to rank up and decks are too expensive for the cards they give (5 random cards where most of the time 4 of them are basic)… Expand
  74. Drake_Gunjin
    Apr 12, 2016
    6
    Fácil de jugar, difícil de dominar.

    Me es difícil reseñar objetivamente esta obra que se a llevado la mitad de mi tiempo y de mi sueldo. ¿Es Hearhstone un buen título? La respuesta que mi corazón grita es SI, pero analizándolo puede que parezca lo contrario. En esta obra controlamos 9 diferentes clases, cada una separada por su propio set de cartas que se complementan con un set    Fácil de jugar, difícil de dominar.

    Me es difícil reseñar objetivamente esta obra que se a llevado la mitad de mi tiempo y de mi sueldo. ¿Es Hearhstone un buen título? La respuesta que mi corazón grita es SI, pero analizándolo puede que parezca lo contrario.

    En esta obra controlamos 9 diferentes clases, cada una separada por su propio set de cartas que se complementan con un set común que comparten todas las clases. Tanto los héroes como las cartas pertenecen al lore de Warcraft por lo que nos encontraremos personajes conocidos como Sylvanas, Jaina, Alamuerte, Thrall, entre varios otros iconos que los fans de Blizzard reconocen a la distancia.

    La experiencia de juego es de altísimo nivel, en esto Blizzard no falla y tiene la formula perfecta para contentar a sus jugadores como para atraer a un nuevo público. Recordemos que Hearthstone puede ser jugado desde un PC o desde dispositivos móviles lo que invita nuevos jugadores acceder a esta obra.

    ¿Entonces es todo perfecto en Hearthstone?, lamentablemente no lo es, al poco jugar te das cuenta que si no realizas compras de set de cartas no podrás acceder rápidamente a mazos competitivos, siempre esta la opción de jugarlo free to play pero tomará muuuuuuuuuucho tiempo poder tener todas las cartas competitivas.

    Existen varios modos de juegos siendo los modos "Casual" y "Ranked" los más populares, además de un sistema de tutorial y mini campañas que obtendrás al comprar las aventuras (expansiones).

    Finalmente al ser Hearthstone un juego "free to play / pay to win" recomiendo a todos que lo prueben de forma gratuita y queda en cada uno de ustedes el libre albedrío de pagar por el o no.    … Expand
  75. Naxinima
    May 30, 2016
    6
    A really good game ruined by the poor pay 2 win experience.
    Pros:
    -Accessible for everyone. -Free. -Easy to play - hard to master. -Good lore, design, ost etc. -Plenty of cards, combinations, decks and strategies. Cons: -You can't get new cards, literally, even if you play 24 hours per day, some cards are impossible to get if you don't spend any money. And this, in a card game is    A really good game ruined by the poor pay 2 win experience.
    Pros:
    -Accessible for everyone.
    -Free.
    -Easy to play - hard to master.
    -Good lore, design, ost etc.
    -Plenty of cards, combinations, decks and strategies.

    Cons:
    -You can't get new cards, literally, even if you play 24 hours per day, some cards are impossible to get if you don't spend any money. And this, in a card game is just frustrating.
    -Even if you pay, you need to spent A LOT of money. It's not cheap.    … Expand
  76. aditya1101
    Oct 5, 2017
    7
    Super great game that is balanced really well. It's easily my favorite card game experience in recent years. The only problem (and it's a pretty major one) is the fact that it's basically pay to win.
  77. Tilt1k
    Jan 29, 2019
    5
    People here are writing that this game is PAY TO WIN, well thats not true. This game is more like PAY TO PLAY. Sure you can go free but you will have what? Like 2 good decks which can compete if you will grind for some time. But if you are not a no-lifer you really cant play it with more diverse decks on higher rank. And i dont like the idea how older cards get trashed after a while. AndPeople here are writing that this game is PAY TO WIN, well thats not true. This game is more like PAY TO PLAY. Sure you can go free but you will have what? Like 2 good decks which can compete if you will grind for some time. But if you are not a no-lifer you really cant play it with more diverse decks on higher rank. And i dont like the idea how older cards get trashed after a while. And there is the F*** RNG factor. Worst one in a card game i have seen. Still its blizzard so its popular and it has great looks and animations. Solo adventures are also a lot of fun for a while and great Arena mod to play if you dont want to play.… Expand
  78. COTOR
    Feb 19, 2019
    5
    Как ветеран игры,могу сказать - игра оставляет очень двойственные ощущения.
    В то же время,на рынке ККИ нет ничего лучше(кроме MTG)но разработчики на отъебись относятся к нерфам карт и в целом с каждым дополнением игра выдыхается.    Как ветеран игры,могу сказать - игра оставляет очень двойственные ощущения.
    В то же время,на рынке ККИ нет ничего лучше(кроме MTG)но разработчики на отъебись относятся к нерфам карт и в целом с каждым дополнением игра выдыхается.
  79. Noah-
    Mar 17, 2019
    7
    The best card game, especially fans of the universe World of Warcraft. But she has many flaws. Firstly, only luck affects the outcome of the match, and I do not understand how things are going in eSports in this game. And the second donat, without it, in principle, it is impossible to play here. After the release of new additions, you must donate to get new cards, because without them youThe best card game, especially fans of the universe World of Warcraft. But she has many flaws. Firstly, only luck affects the outcome of the match, and I do not understand how things are going in eSports in this game. And the second donat, without it, in principle, it is impossible to play here. After the release of new additions, you must donate to get new cards, because without them you can not play with new decks and win. And it’s not a fact that you get all the cards that you need, even for a donate, because even this is only affected by luck.… Expand
  80. matdimond
    Aug 9, 2019
    6
    ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
  81. Chubac
    Oct 26, 2020
    7
    Just like any other Blizzard game, Hearthstone's gameplay and the balance can go from horrible to the best in a few patches. Very heavily relies on constant updates, without it the game would've died years ago.
  82. Tenshiexe
    Nov 9, 2022
    5
    Я делаю оценку для себя и будут тут игры которые я прошел
  83. JRice
    Apr 4, 2015
    6
    At a first glance, a superior CCG, as it succeeds in combining very simple game mechanics with a lot of charme, attractive and really different classes, permanent updates and a solid amount of depth, as no other game does.

    After the first euphoria, however, it gets clear that the game suffers from a lot of downsides as well: Players are pushed to spend money, and therefore, average    At a first glance, a superior CCG, as it succeeds in combining very simple game mechanics with a lot of charme, attractive and really different classes, permanent updates and a solid amount of depth, as no other game does.

    After the first euphoria, however, it gets clear that the game suffers from a lot of downsides as well:

    Players are pushed to spend money, and therefore, average opponents have very strong cards, against which it is hard to compete, even on the lower levels and unranked play.
    Be prepared for LOTS of frustration and unfairness, if you choose to play this game for free, or anything below, at the very least, 100 Dollar.

    Additionaly, randomness plays a bigger role in this game that it should. Too often are games decided by certain, game-breaking cards, lucky or unlucky draws or uncontrollable effects (f.e cards that deals x to y damage to all enemies, cards that attack a random character...).

    Then, the small card-pool leaves very little room for individualism, which has lead to a pool of "standard-decks", that you will find over and over, and that players with ambitions will need to use to reach higher ranks.

    And finally, the balance is suboptimal.
    First of all, does the second player get a significant advantage: not only does he get to choose between four starting cards instead of three, he also gets a card, that costs 0, grants one mana and counts as a spell!
    And then, no matter how good you play and how well your deck is prepared:
    If you are unlucky enough to face certain, usually legendary cards and are not in the position to deal with them immediately or finish the game within the next round, you will most likely lose.
    Examples would be Archmage Antonidas, which creates a fireball (costs 4, deals 6 damage) in the players hand for each spell he casts, inclusing those generated fireballs, or Echoing Ooze, which costs 2 and creates a duplicate of itself, including all buffs, at the end of the turn.

    Those downsides dont make Hearthstone a bad game on their own, as the game has to offer a lot as well. But only for those, that are in the comfortable position to build a deck thats strong enough to compete with every class and level...

    Finalizing, this could have been the best CCG of all time. In its very core, there really is an outstanding game. And if you get to the point where you can build yourself a high-end deck you really like, and only then, immense fun, extreme challenging gameplay and endless amounts of replayablity await.
    Thats also the point, where farming stops feeling like a neverending journey of stress and suffering, and begins to feel rewarding. You will get to love to get awarded, and to increase your collection, just by playing.

    Until you reach that point of comfort, however, you will learn to hate this game from the deepness of your heart. Playing will feel like work, progresses will hardly be noteable, you will get stuck in ranked play fast and other players will trample over you with their high-budget decks.

    Ive gone through both phases and talk by experience.

    So, do i recommend Hearthstone?
    If you dont plan to buy yourself into the game, this game doesnt have much good to offer, will annoy you much more than it will reward and i seriously recommend to skip Hearthstone and every other F2P or P2P competetor and play a CCG with no or little P2W aspects.
    If you like CCGs and are in the position and willing to spend a good amount of money into this game, this game is definitely worth it, will offer a good cost-benefit ratio and will reward you with a well amount of pleasure...    … Expand
  84. SilentHightimes
    Sep 12, 2014
    5
    a Simple simplistic card game, and to be competitive you HALF to throw money at it.

    Blizzard keeps and keeps trying to steal money from our pockets with mediocre games like Diablo 3 Auction house and now a card game that makes you pay to win.

    Fact is blizzard has took the greed route with garbage infested cash shop games.
  85. Violett
    Nov 8, 2014
    7
    "Time is money, friend!" Or even better: "You play, you pay".
    It saddens me the way game developing is going today. From major titles like WoW or StarCraft to casual games you can play on your iPad. Where are our Arcanum, Morrowind or vanilla WoW? Nevermind me, probably I'm just too old for this things.
  86. AJCk19
    Aug 5, 2023
    6
    Honestly, if Hearthstone just keeps stall warrior at bay and continues to balance the game, so you can make whatever deck you want. Then it is like a 8.5 out of 10.

    Having a physical companion game would be nice, and instant open all packs would be nice as well.

    They do great promotions for the game, which I appreciate that.
  87. DatGamingCritic
    Oct 31, 2014
    6
    This game is addicting! I can say that for sure!

    Blizzard has done a damn good job on this one its not Starcraft or Diablo but its bloody amazing. However the Tutorial is very long you have to complete a whole 6 bosses before you can start playing. Thats annoying I can tell you that. The ranked is infuriating but when you win a match you feel unstoppable. I lost 21 games in a row then    This game is addicting! I can say that for sure!

    Blizzard has done a damn good job on this one its not Starcraft or Diablo but its bloody amazing. However the Tutorial is very long you have to complete a whole 6 bosses before you can start playing. Thats annoying I can tell you that. The ranked is infuriating but when you win a match you feel unstoppable. I lost 21 games in a row then won 2 and I was in league 23. I like it. However you dont even get gold if you win a match. You need to win like 3 and then you get between 20-50 gold and 5 cards are 100. So thats where the "FREE"-TO-PLAY aspect comes in. It is good at heart and I would very much you recommend playing it! It is not worth a 0.

    Pros
    - Intentness
    - Ranked is Hard but rewarding
    - Joy of getting good cards

    Cons
    - "FREE"-TO-PLAY
    - Dont get much gold for winning
    - Cards to much

    Total Score: 67/100    … Expand
  88. pancakegaming
    Jul 28, 2014
    7
    on the surface hearthstone looks like another card game like yu-gi-oh but it is very different . unlike blizzards other games hearthstone is free to play , the user is given the option to pay money to buy and open packs to get more cards but you get the currency by completing challenges and every time you level up one of the playable characters you get some card too . hearthstone is in noon the surface hearthstone looks like another card game like yu-gi-oh but it is very different . unlike blizzards other games hearthstone is free to play , the user is given the option to pay money to buy and open packs to get more cards but you get the currency by completing challenges and every time you level up one of the playable characters you get some card too . hearthstone is in no way pay to win , though people who do pay might have a slight advantage if you use a good enough strategy you can beat just about anybody.… Expand
  89. Koblihozrout
    Nov 18, 2014
    5
    It's "free to play" (-which is always a bad thing for a game) card game.

    I find it's pay system adequate, and you can certainly get all the cards without ever paying. It might include a lot of time investing on players part, and it will always depend on frequency of expansions released by Blizzard. But if you aren't stupid you can make in-game currency by playing in arena. Yes it's a    It's "free to play" (-which is always a bad thing for a game) card game.

    I find it's pay system adequate, and you can certainly get all the cards without ever paying. It might include a lot of time investing on players part, and it will always depend on frequency of expansions released by Blizzard. But if you aren't stupid you can make in-game currency by playing in arena.

    Yes it's a card game, which means it's extremely RNG based game, and blizzard actively encourages RNG factor by putting in cards which have random effects.

    I would have given it 7/10 on purely game-play performance. Unfortunately the game even after a year of it's release is still constantly plagued by blizzard sever/connection issues. In other words it's a complete technical disaster, so on top of RNG rage, you will rage for loosing games because of desync, disconnect etc.    … Expand
  90. Laice31
    Jun 26, 2014
    6
    This is a great game... at first. It has beautiful artwork and graphical flair. There's definitely a depth of strategy to figure out. The sounds are hilarious for anyone familiar with WoW.
    But eventually, you'll realize you're getting destroyed by people with a deck full of epic and legendary cards. In other words, it's a free-to-play, pay-to-win game.
  91. GowenGeter
    Sep 2, 2014
    7
    Hearthstone is my first card collecting game, and I have to say it's been a pleasant experience. Grinding quests to get gold can be tedious at times but overall it's a solid game.
  92. vipares
    Dec 10, 2014
    5
    I spent about two weeks with game and based on that I have urge to share my experience.

    Pros: 1) "Deceptively simple and insanely fun" as they market is, really stands. Game is very fun and after several games you can easily get hooked. Although it is simple to begin, you soon realise it's depth of card combinations and strategies. 2) Free to play - who wouldnt like that, fast    I spent about two weeks with game and based on that I have urge to share my experience.

    Pros:

    1) "Deceptively simple and insanely fun" as they market is, really stands. Game is very fun and after several games you can easily get hooked. Although it is simple to begin, you soon realise it's depth of card combinations and strategies.

    2) Free to play - who wouldnt like that, fast download, and you are ready to go

    3) Nice and cosy game UI in Warcraftish style

    4) Games are fast - takes from 5 to 20 mins, depending on lengths of game and speed of players.

    Now the cons:

    1) Progress in terms of your strength 90% comes from new cards. New cards you can unlock with in-game currency "gold", or real life money via in-game shop. Unlocking with currency is of course way to slow, so after you get hokked up, you will need and want to spend lots of money to be able to compete with other players. So yes, it is 100% pay to win game. Even you will hear stories that this or that guy won a tournament with only basic cards deck, truth is you will never come more then rank 18 with them.

    2) Matchmaking system is terrible, there is no way to play against opponents who have similar "strength" cards available. Once you hit "magic" rank 20, game will start matching you with players tossing exlusivly magic (rare and legendary) cards from turn one onward. OFC your chance to win those matches is terrible.

    3) Game also has design flaws, so high ranked (read: powerful decks) players are motivated to de-level by auto surrendering games, in order to grind max daily allowed 100 gold faster the they would on their real rank. That also make it harder for new players to win. It is pretty clear this is allowed so new players would feel urge to alos have that "good" cards as soon as possible, and rush to in-game shop to buy packs of cards.

    4) With every expansion there are new cards (read "stronger"), and if you dont spend real life money, you will always stay behind.

    My current opinion is that I will not stick to the game becasue of their money grab business model.    … Expand
  93. tsakiym
    May 12, 2015
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I do not have to say anything more. But i need to write one hundred and fifty characters. i think my score can describe it............................… Expand
  94. qeeon12
    Mar 23, 2015
    5
    Играть в Hearthstone все равно что играть в покер, практически никакой тактики и планирования. Успешность вашей игры зависит по большей части от того какие карты вам выдадут. Собрать более менее вменяемую колоду нельзя, поскольку вы даже не знаете против какого героя вам придется играть, и какие карты вам выдаст игра на первом ходе тоже неизвестно. Игра как назло может ход за ходом вИграть в Hearthstone все равно что играть в покер, практически никакой тактики и планирования. Успешность вашей игры зависит по большей части от того какие карты вам выдадут. Собрать более менее вменяемую колоду нельзя, поскольку вы даже не знаете против какого героя вам придется играть, и какие карты вам выдаст игра на первом ходе тоже неизвестно. Игра как назло может ход за ходом в начале игры выдавать совершенно бесполезна карты, которые могли бы пригодится на последних ходах. Так же стоить отметить необходимость вкладывать деньги для нормальной игры. Система подбора противника совершенно не учитывает содержание колоды игроков, так игра спокойно может поставить против новичка, у которого нет ни одной легендарной карты человек с 3-4 легендарными существами, что дает ощутимое преимущество в игре тем, кто играет давно, либо вложил свою наличность. И людей с кучей эпических существ довольно много, несмотря на завышенную стоимость игрового контента. Поэтому начинать играть в нее людям, которые не планирует делать больших вложений в игру не стоит, потратите больше нервов, чем получите удовольствия от игры. Даже несмотря на то что весь контент в игре можно покупать за игровую валюту, насобирать на него не так то и просто. Так если вам упала из комплекта совершенно бесполезная эпическая карта, как не странно они существуют, несмотря на свою высокую стоимость, то единственный выход ее разобрать, тут то и есть вся загвоздка, что бы собрать любую другую карту эпического качества нужно потратить 400ед. ресурсов, в то время как за продажу ненужной вам карты дадут всего 100. А учитывая что эпические карты из комплектов падают крайне редко, то насобирать хотя бы на 1 нужную вам крайне сложно.… Expand
  95. ItsNotThatIDont
    Apr 11, 2015
    5
    Welcome to conglomeration, and consolidation. Blizzard owns the PC game market. Type in Hearthstone and META is the first site to pop up. 40 something positive reviews for the critics and not a single mixed or negative review, this is the story throughout earth. Every radio station plays the same songs,every news station reports the same story, etc, etc, etc. That being said, its just aWelcome to conglomeration, and consolidation. Blizzard owns the PC game market. Type in Hearthstone and META is the first site to pop up. 40 something positive reviews for the critics and not a single mixed or negative review, this is the story throughout earth. Every radio station plays the same songs,every news station reports the same story, etc, etc, etc. That being said, its just a computer program which is inherently random, someone who is butt hurt is much more likely to post than someone who isn't, and companies pay for positive reviews....who knows how many are real. That being said, throw some virtual cards down, with a beer, and it's not so bad.… Expand
  96. RainbowStaple
    Jan 16, 2018
    6
    Ive been playing this game for over 3 years and I have to say its a great game, but Blizzard so need to do something about the freeto-play model, however it being a card game people should expect to input some money into it, im lad they have the option to grind for packs - But their aim this as a casual game and yet it takes A LOT of grinding to get a good collection, I can say its a greatIve been playing this game for over 3 years and I have to say its a great game, but Blizzard so need to do something about the freeto-play model, however it being a card game people should expect to input some money into it, im lad they have the option to grind for packs - But their aim this as a casual game and yet it takes A LOT of grinding to get a good collection, I can say its a great game once you get this card collection as I do after this time and some good money input into the game. Otherwise once you have a decent collection is a relatively simple yet very fun card game, Ive played both in tournaments and casually and both are fun experiences (Except grinding to legend that was tough but hell its all in good fun). Honestly a good game if you are willing to play with basic decks for a while or put in some money to get yourself started, as with any card game would do.
    People talk about the whole game being Pay to win but its pay to get a collection, you can still win with few cards; and i've read many reviews of "powerful legendaries" which practically win you the game on the spot but this is not the case; there are only few cards that may only enhance decks and whilst they are unique you do not have to have these cards to win.

    Updating this review after a few months that they need to work on their balancing system; Blizzard has always had a strange way of balancing and its certainly drawing me to other games.    … Expand
  97. Amsheagar
    Jun 13, 2020
    5
    I like the warcraft universe, so i like the characters in the game, but this card game is a little bit boring for me now. I have played for years. It beame very boring for me with time. This game is very time-consuming, and it was very lame and frustrating, i have alwasy faced against the same decks and i have have never chance to win. I have never payed for any packs, and i have never gotI like the warcraft universe, so i like the characters in the game, but this card game is a little bit boring for me now. I have played for years. It beame very boring for me with time. This game is very time-consuming, and it was very lame and frustrating, i have alwasy faced against the same decks and i have have never chance to win. I have never payed for any packs, and i have never got any chance to collect all of the cards. This is a fine game, but i advice, dont give your life for this card game. Try something else, gwent for example. Much more player friendly and entertaining.… Expand
  98. Xexeed
    Mar 14, 2016
    5
    This game is p2w no doubt about it. With the new patch from March 14, 2016, it seems so different. We had to pay all our money and waste our time with gold just to see our hard work destroyed from Blizzard taking out the Goblins and Gnomes and Naxxramas expansions. Although it's a very fun game as well as competitive, the need for money is necessary to win against other players as well asThis game is p2w no doubt about it. With the new patch from March 14, 2016, it seems so different. We had to pay all our money and waste our time with gold just to see our hard work destroyed from Blizzard taking out the Goblins and Gnomes and Naxxramas expansions. Although it's a very fun game as well as competitive, the need for money is necessary to win against other players as well as solo adventures. Thus, there is no point for buying the packs and adventures unless you want to be ranked number 1 in the game. Recommend playing hard for the gold and play with the expansions that are taken out of Hearthstone. Thanks Blizzard.… Expand
  99. steelcl
    Nov 22, 2017
    5
    Hearthstone is a board game that is based into deciding to either make plays to win the board or attack you opponent directly in order to win. It's amazing how Blizzard has been keeping this game interesting, just by giving it a huge variety of possible interactions along these years.

    I would say that the best time to play this game was when there were no expansions, simply because    Hearthstone is a board game that is based into deciding to either make plays to win the board or attack you opponent directly in order to win. It's amazing how Blizzard has been keeping this game interesting, just by giving it a huge variety of possible interactions along these years.

    I would say that the best time to play this game was when there were no expansions, simply because there were very few pre made decks, and creativity could get you far in the ranking. Arena knowledge used to be rewarded.

    As the expansions were released, meta evolved in a way that you've gotta have a defined deck archetype to win matches. Suddenly, decks can win matches by themselves, regardless of the player's skill.

    Nowadays, there are tiers for how competitive decks are. I guess there's some innovation and new elements that keep the game play fun, but I hate that there's right and wrong way to play this game. If you can't afford the new cards, you are not having the same variety of decks as other players, and you're gonna have a hard time climbing into ranks.

    I'm not gonna give a red score to this game, because I think it can be pretty enjoyable if you understand it is just a casual game based on luck, and you are prone to spend money in it.    … Expand
  100. LonaWolf
    May 10, 2018
    7
    Nice game, very polished, but it is hard for a new player in ranked mode against all the decks from players with special cards. Sometimes you can just sit there an watch a combination of cards rip you apart. That is very frustrating. Otherwise the game is a lot of fun!
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Best PC Game of 2014
7
#7 Most Discussed PC Game of 2014
41
#41 Most Shared PC Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
88

Generally favorable reviews - based on 42 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 42 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 42
  3. Negative: 0 out of 42
  1. Hardcore Gamer
    Jul 6, 2014
    90
    When Blizzard announced they were making a digital CCG, we all expected it to look and sound beautiful, and there was little doubt that it would be well-balanced, but I don’t think anyone anticipated this level of sophistication and subtle brilliance.
    Read full review
  2. CD-Action
    Jun 28, 2014
    85
    Simple rules, high production values, low system requirements and huge tactical freedom make Hearthstone one of the best card games available. And if you take into account the free-to-play model – it’s the best one. [05/2014, p.62]
  3. GameOver.gr
    Jun 7, 2014
    85
    A fine example of a great free-to-play game. Hearthstone is not only an addictive and well designed card game, but absolutely fair with gamers that do not wish to spend money on it.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »