In the community of Hearthstone there is an uproar. The new Battle Pass and the rewards are under extreme criticism.
Actually, the new rewards system of Hearthstone was supposed to improve everything. After all, there is now a clear, predefined way for players to unlock gold, card packs, and other bonuses in the card game. But it didn’t go completely according to plan. In the official forum and the Subreddit of Blizzard’s card game, “hell is breaking loose”. There is a downpour of criticism, nasty memes, and overall the mood is very negative.
What happened? Before the release of the new expansion “Madness at the Darkmoon Faire”, Hearthstone already received its big patch. All the major innovations were already included, such as:
- The Duels mode
- The achievements system
- The rewards path (new progression system)
- The Tavern Pass (Battle Pass)
Especially the last two points are massively criticized.
Why is this seen so negatively? The rewards path was supposed to simplify and improve many things. All rewards can now be found here, and it is clearly visible how they can be unlocked. Rewards include gold, card packs, or access to the Arena, sometimes individual cards, and at the end, even special skins.
However, there are numerous points of criticism from the community. The most important include:
- The price of €20 is considered too high. In other games, the Battle Pass typically costs €10 and offers more rewards.
- Each level on the rewards path requires more XP than the previous one. So at the later levels, one has to work for several days.
- The rewards path grants less gold than players would have received with the old system for the same playtime.
- Many bonuses in the Duels mode can only be unlocked if one owns numerous cards from the latest expansion – so one has to buy many packs.
New card announced!! from r/hearthstone
Same name for double confusion: Another problem is that Blizzard named the Battle Pass in Hearthstone “Tavern Pass”. The Tavern Pass already existed as a term in the game and granted bonuses for the “Battlegrounds” mode. Many players thought they would now be buying the bonuses for the Battlegrounds mode with the Tavern Pass – this was not the case. This led to a lot of confusion and disappointment over having spent €20 on something they actually didn’t want.
Nasty memes and a big shitstorm: The general mood in the Hearthstone Subreddit is negative. Many players accuse Blizzard of excessive greed and deception. After all, it was promised that the rewards path would offer the same or more rewards. While this is correct for earnable skins, it is not the case for gold rewards. After all, you now receive no gold for 3 wins, but only at certain milestones on the rewards path.
Official Blizzard Interview on Battlepass System from r/hearthstone
Moreover, the XP system is quite opaque. It is difficult to determine how much XP a round of Hearthstone actually brings. The lion’s share is granted by daily and weekly quests. After that, it doesn’t feel like one can still work towards the goal.
What is being demanded? Most players demand that Blizzard fundamentally rework the rewards path. The Tavern Pass needs to be cheaper, and the individual levels on the rewards path should be easier to achieve. It feels bad for many players to be overwhelmed with rewards at the beginning, but later to invest many hours and days for small steps. Those who do not play Hearthstone as a “full-time game” have virtually no chance of unlocking the later rewards.
Have you checked out the new Hearthstone systems? What do you think about it?
If you don’t let the negativity deter you, you can see the 135 new cards from Madness at the Darkmoon Faire here.
