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

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  1. 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
  2. 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
  3. 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
  4. 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.
  5. 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
  6. 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.
  7. 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
  8. 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
  9. 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.
  10. 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.
  11. 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!
  12. 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
  13. 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
  14. 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
  15. 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
  16. matdimond
    Aug 9, 2019
    6
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  17. Qapten
    May 17, 2020
    6
    Excellent gameplay and presentation, with a wealth of depth and gamemodes. A tonne of fun in the beginning, especially if you have friends to play with. However in the long run it is clear the game becomes very grindy if you stick to a strictly free to play model. To get competitive you will likely have to spend a considerable amount of money to buy and open card packs, and you'll have toExcellent gameplay and presentation, with a wealth of depth and gamemodes. A tonne of fun in the beginning, especially if you have friends to play with. However in the long run it is clear the game becomes very grindy if you stick to a strictly free to play model. To get competitive you will likely have to spend a considerable amount of money to buy and open card packs, and you'll have to repeat this whenever a new expansion comes out. That said, from a purely casual point of view the game is a lot of fun, but would really benefit from better free to play rewards.… Expand
  18. Triblue
    May 21, 2023
    6
    Très bon jeu. Dommage que se soit un pay-to-win où les cartes virtuelles valent le même prix que des vraies cartes.
  19. 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
  20. 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.
  21. 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
  22. 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
  23. 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
  24. 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
  25. 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
  26. 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.
  27. 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
  28. 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
  29. 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.
  30. 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
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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

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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.
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  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.
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