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The Mysteries of Beta – Spectator Mode?

by - 11 years ago

I’ve stated on our Hearthstone podcast that Blizzard would likely use the closed beta to iron out a few bugs and glaring balance issues, and then used the open beta for load testing. I was – and largely still am – convinced that the features we have now will be all the features we see when Hearthstone goes live.

With one caveat.

The log-in screen features a nice, clean interface with buttons to access regular play mode, practice mode, or The Arena. Below and to the far left are buttons to access the online card store, and buttons to open packs and create custom decks. Right below the Arena mode button though is a fairly obvious placeholder for a feature we haven’t heard discussed yet. We all anticipate that Hearthstone is build and conceptualized to grow, the question is how and when.

There have been some questions about Hearthstone tournaments with a spectator mode, but the official response to it has been non-committal. Another fairly popular request has been a pass-and-play option, which would be an excellent feature for mobile device users. If it is planned, there have been no further responses as of yet.

For now, the answer is simple: it is in fact a placeholder for future use, but don’t expect any additional features in the near term.

The takeaway from this is that Blizzard is clearly planning ahead, exploring different features, and streamlining Hearthstone for optimal game play. The face that the interface is already designed with the future in mind is encouraging indeed!


JR Cook

JR has been writing for fan sites since 2000 and has been involved with Blizzard Exclusive fansites since 2003. JR was also a co-host for 6 years on the Hearthstone podcast Well Met! He helped co-found BlizzPro in 2013.


0 responses to “The Mysteries of Beta – Spectator Mode?”

  1. Gilmar says:

    HYPE o/ Nice post

    @niichan30 Twitter.

  2. Diego Silva says:

    Tournament for sure

  3. Shtanky says:

    I’d LOVE for the additional option to be a 8 person Draft-Tournament. As fun as Arena is, organized draft tournament play with 12 card packs would be awesome !!!

    You’d draft 36 cards and weed out the bottom 6, which would allow for Hero flexibility. You could even add a caveat for tournament play that “other hero” cards could be still be played with a +2 Cost attached to them.

    Would make for some very cool decks and play. IMO of course 🙂