20 ms·

Blizzard has released only the WoW expansion and some minor hearthstone expansions in the last 3 years. They have not really pushed any major IP releases. Acti-

by Grimm1 5y ago

Blizzard has released only the WoW expansion and some minor hearthstone expansions in the last 3 years. They have not really pushed any major IP releases. Acti-Blizzard is as profitable as ever though largely because of the MTX they've baked into COD and other games, their mobile games, and things like their overseas market penetration working out for them. That combined with the fact they've lost a significant amount of what constituted their top senior creative talent I'm going to say two things: First they're probably a sound investment, they'll probably keep climbing as the MTX proliferates and as things like Diablo 4 on the horizon release and Warzone through Activision is still massively popular as ever. And second they're probably not a place where you can expect massive innovation and polish in games any longer, and if you were a fan, like myself, that magical time is over, maybe look to Dreamhaven that some of that senior creative talent founded and others have gone to since leaving.

Reason077 5y ago
Hearthstone actually gets regular, huge updates now days. Far more than it did in the first few years. Just today they dropped a surprise update for Battlegrounds. It's clear there's a major, constant effort going into developing new expansions, new game modes, etc. They've figured out a clever model of rotating out the old content to make room for more new stuff. No doubt Hearthstone is very profitable for Blizzard! Starcraft 2 and HotS, on the other hand, have basically been abandoned. Even Overwatch seems to be stagnating somewhat.
- scruple 5y ago
  That's true, and I love Hearthstone and play regularly (I really prefer the rule sets in HS to MTG:Arena, for example) and have played since Beta... But, Hearthstone is also monetized like crazy today, as well. Especially as compared to 3 years ago.
  - Reason077 5y ago
    I think they have actually struck a pretty good balance when it comes to paid content. There isn't really anything (except maybe some of the hero skins?) you actually have to pay for and can't get for free. You can be top-level competitive without spending a cent, so long as you play enough and spend your gold & dust wisely...
    - scruple 5y ago
      Yes, I agree. The paid content is good (and the changes they've made to F2P are good, too), and I also think that it's required to maintain the level of development that they are pumping into the game, but... IMO, it is not as easy to play Hearthstone _casually_ today as it was 3 years ago and that's the time frame that the article is discussing wrt MAU. edit/ The addition of classic mode may make it more approachable for casual players. Time will tell.
- jkeuhlen 5y ago
  Didn't they just copy the MtG model on cycling content for competitions? I could be wrong but I thought it was almost exactly what Wizards of the Coast starting doing in the early days of Magic.
  - Reason077 5y ago
    Quite possibly. I'm not familiar enough with MtG to say. But it keeps the game fresh, while conveniently (for Blizzard) also ensuring the fans keep paying.
- AceJohnny2 5y ago
  I'll admit Hearthstone is the only mobile game I've consistently played over the years. As a huge gamer, nothing else in the mobile space has had the breadth and depth of Hearthstone, while being accessible for 5-20 minute sessions.
MuffinFlavored 5y ago
> Blizzard has released only the WoW expansion I think the last thing WoW needs is more expansions.
loosetypes 5y ago
I’m excited to see life in the Diablo franchise after (personal opinion) the abomination that was Diablo 3. But I’ve really lost trust in the company and have a hard time imagining Diablo 4 being much better than Diablo 3. Diablo 2 Resurrected looks intriguing and seems to be going about things in the right way, involving the community, etc. but I believe it’s a contract job by a third party? I have a hard time imagining Blizzard proper ever making a single-player, offline-friendly game.
- kstrauser 5y ago
  Am I the only person who really liked Diablo 3? I introduced my wife to it as her first game in the genre, and we’ve spent a lot of hours making team runs through hard dungeons. For sheer “let’s kill 300 things at once” endorphin hits, it’s great.
  - bick_nyers 5y ago
    D3 is really, really fun. It started out at launch ok at best. Pretty grindy, and slow. One or two playthroughs was enough for most people. Nowadays though the endgame is definitely on my top 10 list. Once you hit level 70 and get an armor set finished with some Kanai's Cube and start leveling up your legendary gems... Oh man
    - bombcar 5y ago
      D3 is a good game marred by a sub-par launch.
      - loosetypes 5y ago
        Interesting, I played at launch so perhaps I ought to check it out again.
    - kstrauser 5y ago
      That’s how I saw it. My wife and I each have hundreds of paragon points, so that new characters are born ridiculously OP. But IMHO that’s fun, too! I collected all the speed runs, like “beat Act I in 1 hour” and that was challenging. Going for the ludicrous achievements like “kill 400 enemies consecutively” was fun. Running through a ridiculously hard timed dungeon, getting an electric charge, and watching all these uber-powerful demons explode as I sprint past them was way satisfying. Coming up with equipment sets where every piece doubles my damage points was engaging. At launch, it was alright. Now that I’m a wildly powerful godlike thing that can kill Diablo by looking at him sideways, it’s an awful lot of fun in a completely different way.

by Grimm1 5y ago

Reason077 5y ago

Hearthstone actually gets regular, huge updates now days. Far more than it did in the first few years. Just today they dropped a surprise update for Battlegrounds. It's clear there's a major, constant effort going into developing new expansions, new game modes, etc. They've figured out a clever model of rotating out the old content to make room for more new stuff. No doubt Hearthstone is very profitable for Blizzard! Starcraft 2 and HotS, on the other hand, have basically been abandoned. Even Overwatch seems to be stagnating somewhat.

scruple 5y ago
That's true, and I love Hearthstone and play regularly (I really prefer the rule sets in HS to MTG:Arena, for example) and have played since Beta... But, Hearthstone is also monetized like crazy today, as well. Especially as compared to 3 years ago.
- Reason077 5y ago
  I think they have actually struck a pretty good balance when it comes to paid content. There isn't really anything (except maybe some of the hero skins?) you actually have to pay for and can't get for free. You can be top-level competitive without spending a cent, so long as you play enough and spend your gold & dust wisely...
  - scruple 5y ago
    Yes, I agree. The paid content is good (and the changes they've made to F2P are good, too), and I also think that it's required to maintain the level of development that they are pumping into the game, but... IMO, it is not as easy to play Hearthstone _casually_ today as it was 3 years ago and that's the time frame that the article is discussing wrt MAU. edit/ The addition of classic mode may make it more approachable for casual players. Time will tell.
jkeuhlen 5y ago
Didn't they just copy the MtG model on cycling content for competitions? I could be wrong but I thought it was almost exactly what Wizards of the Coast starting doing in the early days of Magic.
- Reason077 5y ago
  Quite possibly. I'm not familiar enough with MtG to say. But it keeps the game fresh, while conveniently (for Blizzard) also ensuring the fans keep paying.
AceJohnny2 5y ago
I'll admit Hearthstone is the only mobile game I've consistently played over the years. As a huge gamer, nothing else in the mobile space has had the breadth and depth of Hearthstone, while being accessible for 5-20 minute sessions.

MuffinFlavored 5y ago

> Blizzard has released only the WoW expansion I think the last thing WoW needs is more expansions.

loosetypes 5y ago

I’m excited to see life in the Diablo franchise after (personal opinion) the abomination that was Diablo 3. But I’ve really lost trust in the company and have a hard time imagining Diablo 4 being much better than Diablo 3. Diablo 2 Resurrected looks intriguing and seems to be going about things in the right way, involving the community, etc. but I believe it’s a contract job by a third party? I have a hard time imagining Blizzard proper ever making a single-player, offline-friendly game.

kstrauser 5y ago
Am I the only person who really liked Diablo 3? I introduced my wife to it as her first game in the genre, and we’ve spent a lot of hours making team runs through hard dungeons. For sheer “let’s kill 300 things at once” endorphin hits, it’s great.
- bick_nyers 5y ago
  D3 is really, really fun. It started out at launch ok at best. Pretty grindy, and slow. One or two playthroughs was enough for most people. Nowadays though the endgame is definitely on my top 10 list. Once you hit level 70 and get an armor set finished with some Kanai's Cube and start leveling up your legendary gems... Oh man
  - bombcar 5y ago
    D3 is a good game marred by a sub-par launch.
    - loosetypes 5y ago
      Interesting, I played at launch so perhaps I ought to check it out again.
  - kstrauser 5y ago
    That’s how I saw it. My wife and I each have hundreds of paragon points, so that new characters are born ridiculously OP. But IMHO that’s fun, too! I collected all the speed runs, like “beat Act I in 1 hour” and that was challenging. Going for the ludicrous achievements like “kill 400 enemies consecutively” was fun. Running through a ridiculously hard timed dungeon, getting an electric charge, and watching all these uber-powerful demons explode as I sprint past them was way satisfying. Coming up with equipment sets where every piece doubles my damage points was engaging. At launch, it was alright. Now that I’m a wildly powerful godlike thing that can kill Diablo by looking at him sideways, it’s an awful lot of fun in a completely different way.