The first champion to get a second major visual update and why it was a good idea

While I wasn't there at the very beginning, I started playing League of Legends in summer 2010, less than a year after the game was officially released, so I always get excited whenever one of the champions I remember from back then get an update - be it in terms of graphics or gameplay.  This time, it's League's original pirate, Gangplank, who debuted a new model and moveset on the PBE as of last week, with the changes to be released alongside the "Burning Tides" pirate event.  On the other hand, aside from a few tweaks - mostly regarding his E ability, "Raise Morale" - for all intents and purposes his abilities have largely remained the same since the game was released in October 2009.  Unlike other champions from the game's early days, his kit remains functional and conventional wisdom says not to try and fix what isn't broken.  The same could be said for his model, which still holds up next to even the newest champions.  But what about when it's not broken, just boring?  Riot has clearly demonstrated their philosophy in both art and game design in that regard - that the "fun" in functionality has to be front and center and here I think they succeeded.

Heroes of the Storm "expansion" - so what does that mean, really?

One of the most anticipated battlegrounds so far, The Battlefields of Eternity, hit the live servers after a week long stint on the Public Test Realm (PTR).  On June 30, the map's release kicked off what's being touted as Heroes of the Storm's first expansion, The Eternal Conflict, with new heroes, and new skins centered around the Diablo Franchise.

This sounds absolutely epic.  However, if there's something about it that doesn't quite make sense, don't worry.  You're not alone.  What's likely bothering you is that question in the back of your mind:  How do you make an expansion for a free to play game, anyway?

New heroes for Hearthstone - or class skins - are they worth it?

It comes down to the same thing in the end, but doesn't the first one sound way more epic?  Blizzard apparently thought so too, as I have yet to find anywhere in the Blizzard press release referring to the "fresh face" for each class as new skins.  I'm sure it didn't hurt their decision that it's far easier to pitch a 10 dollar price tag for a new hero than it is for what essentially amounts to a shiny new portrait.  So far new representatives for the Warrior (Magni Bronzebeard), Hunter (Alleria Windrunner) and Mage (Medivh) classes have been unveiled.  

The Heroes of the Storm join the Eternal Conflict in Diablo event

It's common knowledge that for a lot of people, the number seven holds special significance - from the simple concept of "lucky sevens" to the regular usage in fantasy stories as particularly magical quantity.  Whatever your thoughts on the superstition however, it looks like the sevens have struck again - or someone at Blizzard subscribes to the belief.  After seven maps centered around the new Nexus setting, Blizzard has decided the time is right to start drawing on its existing universes for battleground inspiration, starting with Diablo.  Ready to pick a side in the Eternal Conflict?    

Heroes of the Storm Open Beta - transitioning from other MOBAs

So it's been about 10 days since Blizzard opened the Nexus to all with the start of the Heroes of the Storm Open Beta on May 19.  Though the game's official launch is this Tuesday, June 2, for all intents and purposes, it can be considered released.  Anyone who was excited for it yet never received an alpha or beta invite is unlikely to have held off another two weeks for the "beta" label to be removed.  After all the quality assessment that's been done over last year, there's unlikely to be much difference between the version we're playing now and the one after June 2.

The massive influx of new players can be felt within the course of a single match.  It feels like the Technical Alpha all over again, with every team having a few members fresh from League, Smite and the like, still learning the ropes of concepts that differentiate Heroes from the rest.  It's true that until recently new players were being added weekly but those were in gradual measured quantities as opposed to the exponential growth the player base has undergone in the last couple weeks.  While I welcome our new arrivals to the Nexus, I figured now would be a good time to talk about a few of the ways you're not in DOTA anymore....

Chen Stormstout - assassin tank?

So that title probably sounds inane but I cannot think of a better way to describe my experience playing the Legendary Brewmaster's incarnation in Heroes of the Storm.  The most famous panda in Warcraft can just as easily take hits for the team and disrupt enemy positioning as he can burst down priority back line targets and chase down fleeing survivors.  The result is the line between assassin and tank blurring to a point it should not be able to without the aid of beer goggles.

Kalypso Media rep hints at upcoming Dungeons 2 expansion or DLC

So I beat the campaign for Dungeons 2 the other day.  Overall, it was pretty fun, even if the narrator was just a little too chatty and the ending more than a little abrupt.  Like in many games, in Dungeons 2 you get a reasonable idea how far along you are by how much the campaign map has been filled out with completed missions.  However, the story introduced a couple of, what appeared to be, important plot threads, which it left unresolved, leaving you surprised when the credits rolled.

Dungeons 2 first impressions

Developer Realmforge's new game, Dungeons 2, was released on Steam today.  My first couple hours through the campaign were enough to show that it's not so much a sequel as a rework.  Dungeons: The Dark Lord, dubbed a "stand alone expansion" was more in line with a traditional sequel, where a game takes the same mechanics and expands on them.  Dungeons 2, while staying true to the vision of the original, takes a completely different approach to execution.

Hearthstone: Crafting versus card packs for beginners

Blackwing Lair was released today, and with it the new cards to be unlocked from defeating bosses and completing class challenges.  Playing through it got me thinking about the two primary ways of getting new cards in Hearthstone - purchasing packs and crafting.  Writing this, that does seem a bit of a weak connection but it's totally what happened.  I'm sure we've all had the dilemma of deciding whether to craft that card you want right away or waiting to see if it pops up in the next batch of card packs (I suspect a lot of us have been on a pack buying spree too, but that's another story).  Both arcane dust and in-game gold take a while to build up and crafting one card or purchasing one pack makes a pretty major dent.  So which one's better?  The answer may surprise you.

Gul'dan - how the warlock we all love to hate has cast a spell over the Warcraft fanbase

With the latest developments of Warlords of Draenor, Gul'dan has returned to the Warcraft universe as a major villain and for his first primary role in World of Warcraft.  Though I don't play WoW, I follow the story and after watching the cinematic from Patch 6.1 when he assumes control of the Iron Horde, I found myself really excited to see where Blizzard takes the plot surrounding one of my favorite villains.

But this begs the question: why is he so intriguing?  While important for lore reasons - being the one who set the orcs on their path to demonic corruption and invasion of Azeroth, etc. - as a character the first orcish warlock has very little depth.  His desires power simply for power's sake and will sacrifice anything and anyone to get it.  He's a textbook sociopath with exactly zero redeeming or even vaguely sympathetic aspects.

Despite all this, Gul'dan is widely considered one of the best villains in the franchise - why?  What makes the Betrayer of the Orcs such a compelling villain?

Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition - or why I might buy the same game twice

Capcom announced today that Devil May Cry 4: Special Edition will be released June 2015 for Playstation 4, Xbox One and PC. It's interesting to see the company go back to the franchise pre-reboot, especially hot on the heels of DMC: Definitive Edition, which debuted earlier this month.  Normally I don't pay attention to "remastered" releases, even of my favorite games.  However, after seeing the announcement trailer, this game should be cited as an example of a "special edition" done right.

Come into my parlor said the spider to the hero - thoughts on Tomb of the Spider Queen

As many League of Legends players will tell you, when any online game has several maps or modes available, queue times will naturally be longer or shorter as maps fall in and out of favor with the player-base.  Anyone looking for a good game on Twisted Treeline or Dominion can attest to that (self included).  Eventually, even those who like the less popular maps will give up because it simply takes too damn long to find a game.  Blizzard got around this by taking out the element of choice and making each game take place on a random battleground.  While this approach presumably allows Heroes of the Storm to have a great deal more maps and game modes than its competition, it brings its own set of limitations.

Heroes of the Dorm - or Blizzard Hunger Games

Maybe no one's going to die, but for the final contestants the prize may well be your life.  And what will participating cost all the rest who don't even get close?

Thoughts on Overwatch and what it means for MOBAs

I'm sure the title has you confused - Overwatch, while certainly taking some MOBA aspects, is still very much a first person shooter.  Or is it?  Up until recently, I had spared little thought for Blizzard's upcoming shooter, having been obsessively following the development of their other project, Heroes of the Storm.  Thanks to a Founders' Pack, I'm now in the Heroes beta, and the tunnel vision seems to have cleared somewhat.  So when Blizzard announced this past weekend at PAX East that the Overwatch beta was slated for Fall 2015, it seemed like a good time to take a look at their first new franchise in 17 years.

Guide Spotlights #2 - Heroes of the Storm

Welcome to "Guide Spotlights", the series where I highlight a community member who has been producing quality content to help their fellow players.

Guide Spotlights #1 - Heroes of the Storm

When most of us start a new MOBA, we do a little research first, or at least just after that first, painful loss where you had no idea what you were doing while your teammates raged at you.  Guides and full play through videos are great but what if you just want something you can watch on your phone during the loading screen?  In this series I'll pick a game and spotlight members of its community who produce short and sweet content for new and veteran players alike.

Darkest Dungeon gives a light for the dungeon crawling genre

A friend of mine sent me a link the other day for a game's demo at PAX East 2014.  Titled "Darkest Dungeon", my interest was immediately piqued since I'd recently done a post on another game - "Dungeons II".  A cookie for you if you can see the connection there.

"Darkest Dungeon" looks like it may actually live up to its slightly grandiose name with a unique twist on the classic dungeon crawling RPG genre.  You control the standard four person party, fighting monsters in turn-based combat and collecting loot - but staying alive is only half the battle.  As you venture deeper into the catacombs, the real question becomes: can you keep your party from not only being devoured by monsters, but also sane enough that they don't kill themselves?

Heroes can't just be balanced - they have to be epic

The concept of Heroes of the Storm is very simple: play as your favorite characters from various Blizzard franchises in a massive hero (and villain) brawl.  What makes them so compelling, that they are able to stay with us long after we've stopped playing the original franchise?  It's that they resonate with our internalized mythology - adhering to age old archetypes of heroes and villains reinforced by everything from popular culture to bedtime stories.  Their identities are already established in a sense, so their incarnation in Heroes and their previous games isn't our first time meeting them.  We know them.

Just not nearly as well as we thought.     

Classic League of Legends champion Tristana gets a long-awaited update

Patch 5.2 is now live, and with it the Tristana visual and kit rework.  Though I can't speak as a Tristana main, at least as a Tristana fan, I love the end result for its thematic cohesion.  I haven't even played her in a couple of years but our pint-sized gunner still holds a special place in my heart.  Tristana was one of the first champions I ever played when I started League that summer four and half years ago (Season 1 in League terms).  She was also quite likely the first ADC, attack damage carry for those who know them as Marksmen, that I played back when they were still called ADCs.  The memory gave me a fair bit of investment in her champion update.

Like Diablo? Like Warcraft? Then get excited for Dungeons II

Remember how Azmodan kept appearing to taunt you all through Act III of Diablo III but instead ended up telling you all of his plans?  His bravado and overconfidence were a big part of his undoing, and he's not alone.  Your standard villain will almost always trip themselves up at the finish line and the hero capitalizes on it to save the day.  When you're on the verge of completing your grand plan for world domination or ultimate power, one would think you would be damn careful at such a critical juncture.  There will be plenty of time to gloat later when they're all your  unwilling minions.  Did you ever catch yourself thinking "if it had been me things would have gone differently..."  Well, developer Realmforge Studios is giving you your chance to prove it with Dungeons II.

Heroes of the Storm Closed Beta is live - so let's talk about the release date

New heroes and villains will be joining the Nexus in the Closed Beta and beyond.

So Heroes of the Storm is officially out of Alpha and has begun its Closed Beta testing, which with most games is usually the point at which the community starts getting its first good look at them pre-release.  However, with most games the community isn't actively participating in the testing phase usually exclusive to developers.  The Technical Alpha for Heroes has been going on since March 2014, so the start of the Closed Beta is a slightly different milestone in the development timeline than in previous Blizzard projects.  However, even if we don't have a one to one comparison, from looking at other games we may be able to predict a window for the game's release date before a company rep decides to grace us with something more specific than "when it's ready."

Throwback Thursday: The retro trend of Heroes of the Storm's Warcraft characters

For the last several years, the Warcraft franchise has become almost synonymous with World of Warcraft.  The other day, a friend of mine commented that Hearthstone wasn't so much "Heroes of Warcraft" as it was simply "Heroes of WoW".  It's true that Hearthstone currently draws on elements from WoW more than any of the other Warcraft games, and that the MMORPG will likely remain the defining aspect of the franchise.

However, a recent pattern in Heroes of the Storm implies that Blizzard is making an effort to hearken back to the Warcraft that many of its older fans remember.  So for the first post of 2015 (and first Throwback Thursday edition) let's take a look at how Blizzard is tacitly acknowledging that some of those Warcraft fans may not necessarily be World of Warcraft fans.