Will Hearthstone become even more Pay2Win and take away players’ gold? Blizzard responds to players’ concerns and explains what the new system will entail.
For several weeks now, the expansion “Scholomance Academy” has been live in Hearthstone, bringing 135 new cards that have refreshed the game. However, another topic is causing a lot of discussion in the community, as Blizzard seems to want to take away player rewards – at least, that’s the fear of some. But Blizzard quickly reassures: All players should receive just as many or even more rewards in the new system.
What is this all about? Some time ago, Hearthstone conducted a survey to gather players’ opinions on new reward systems. This sparked discussions in the game’s subreddit. In the new system, quests would no longer earn gold but instead grant experience points. These points slowly fill a player level. Each level-up then grants rewards. Primarily, there is gold, but less frequently, card packs or cosmetic rewards.
The community is already referring to the system as a “Battle Pass” because it resembles mechanics found in Fortnite or Dead by Daylight.
Players are concerned about more Pay2Win: Initial information from the survey and an early look at the system led to the assumption that rewards for players would be drastically reduced. Due to the elimination of quests as a source of gold income, the monthly gold earnings would drop from about 9,000 gold to around 5,000 gold.
This would ultimately mean that players would have a harder time obtaining the newest packs. These contain the freshest and most sought-after cards, which are essential for winning.
The implication would be: If obtaining the newest cards becomes more difficult, then purchasing packs for real money becomes necessary. Only those who pay can keep up – which would be more Pay2Win.
Hearthstone has already been grappling with Pay2Win accusations for some time. After all, it is relatively difficult for free-to-play players to obtain all cards. It’s not impossible, but it requires a lot of time, ambition, and also a good amount of skill to succeed in the arena.
This is what Blizzard says: Dean Ayala from the Hearthstone team spoke up. He explained in the game’s subreddit that players should receive at least the same amount or even more rewards. The new system would still generate approximately the same amount of gold, if not a little more. Players’ freedom in how they spend their gold would not be restricted in any way.
Accordingly, it should also be possible in the future to spend saved gold at the start of an expansion to purchase many packs.
The intention behind the system is that it should represent an improvement for all players. Rewards should be granted through a unified system, allowing players to play Hearthstone exactly as they wish. They would no longer be forced to play a specific mode. Experience points are awarded everywhere – so every game mode would inevitably lead to rewards through new level-ups.
Somewhat jokingly, he added as the source for his statements: “Countless hours spent staring at Excel spreadsheets to get this right.”
So Blizzard aims to reassure and assures that the new reward system fundamentally means no change or at best positive innovations. Whether this is true or Hearthstone ultimately takes a step closer to Pay2Win remains to be seen once the new system goes live.
