I don’t need to beat around the bush. Blizzard consistently makes great games. Some old WoW friends might complain, saying “everything was better back in Vanilla”. Diablo 3 might not have been a good game at release, but it has developed into more than just a solid hack&slash over the various patches.
Adding to that is the simple fact that Blizzard does not release games they are not satisfied with. They have canceled both “StarCraft: Ghost” and “Titan” as well as “Thrall’s Adventure” because they did not meet their own standards.
No matter what criteria one may establish for a “good game”, financially speaking, Blizzard titles have always been a huge success. No game from this company has ever been out of the sales charts for less than several weeks. Yet, I dare to suggest that “Heroes of the Storm” will not be a financial success – even though many people will play and love it.
The MOBA Model: Skins for Cash
Whether it’s SMITE, DOTA, or LoL – the three major representatives of the MOBA genre generate their largest revenues undoubtedly through the sale of premium skins.
The new variants of existing heroes offer no gameplay advantage, but are usually designed to be slightly more elaborate, significantly cooler, or just absurdly funny. This is a wonderful model for characters that are new and relatively unknown.
Of course, a god like “Zeus” or “Freya” is technically not new, but nobody really associates a detailed appearance with these deities or even a sophisticated backstory.
The Problem: Epic Can’t Get More Epic
And so we come to the problem of “Heroes of the Storm”: The characters are all epic heroes or feared adversaries. They are not new, and anyone who hears the name “Thrall” immediately has a very specific Orc in mind. An even better example is “Arthas”. Anyone who has played Warcraft 3 or WoW will immediately associate that name with the runeblade Frostmourne and the dark armor of Ner’zhul.
How is it possible to create a skin variant that is even more epic than the typical appearance of the great leader of the Scourge that we have known for over ten years? What could look better than Kerrigan, the Queen of Blades, in her beloved form as the leader of the Swarm?
It is practically impossible to further enhance an already incredibly cool character. This may still work for lesser-known heroes like “Murky” or “Abathur” through silly skins, but really notable characters can’t be polished up like that.
When No Skin Appeals
[intense_blockquote color=”#ffffff” border_color=”#fa2f2f” width=”40%” rightalign=”1″]What heresy would it be to put Uther the Lightbringer in a medic costume now?[/intense_blockquote]
You should never apply your own opinion to others, but I believe that with this view, I represent a considerably large group. In Smite, I had the immediate urge to own many new skins.
In Heroes of the Storm, there isn’t a single skin that I desperately want. I love the characters in their current form, which is also the one with whom I’ve spent weeks, if not months and years in games. What heresy would it be to put Uther the Lightbringer in a medic costume now? Not even Kerrigan’s succubus skin could tempt me to spend money. And THAT really means something to me.
Just a Theory
This is of course just a theory of mine. We do not have official sales figures for this game, and especially with the “Founder’s Pack”, I can well imagine that some impatient player has jumped in. Therefore, Blizzard may be better off at the direct launch than other MOBAs, where you couldn’t just “buy in” – but in the long run, especially after the release, the incentive to spend real money could disappear.
What do you think? Do you share my assessment of the design of the characters? And how could Blizzard change that? What could be designed to create new incentives to want to invest real money?
