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In some ways it was fine, the games were, after all, doing spectacularly well. In 2008, however, the company’s directors looked at how they were relying exclusively on three key brands – the action role-playing adventure Diablo, the strategy simulation sequel Starcraft II, and WoW – and they were concerned. Its games are the very definition of “hardcore”: deep, demanding and riddled with complex mechanics. The Blizzard wayīased in a sprawling campus facility in Irvine, California, Blizzard is the veteran studio behind acclaimed strategy simulation titles Starcraft and Warcraft, and the massively multiplayer online game, World of Warcraft (WoW). To Blizzard Entertainment, Hearthstone was supposed to be a niche project, an experimental diversion.

It sounds complicated and geeky, which is perhaps why so many industry insiders were caught off guard by its sudden and phenomenal success – including, it turns out, the game’s own developer. The aim is to destroy your opponent’s main Hero character by playing stronger Minion cards at the right times, and making effective use of special spell cards that add force to compatible moves. These mini armies are pitched against an opponent on a table-top warzone, with a resource named mana governing how many cards a participant is able to play in their turn. Players select one of nine character classes such as hunters, warriors and priests, then build decks of soldiers called Minions, each with their own abilities and weaknesses. Photograph: Activisionįor those yet to be indoctrinated, Hearthstone is a turn-based strategy game based in an esoteric fantasy universe and inspired by complex collectible trading card sets like Magic: The Gathering. The Hero characters are at the top and bottom of the screen with the minions meeting in the middle of the board. A Priest takes on a Paladin in this Heathstone match.