Hearthstone Arena mode about to get some big changes…

Hearthstone fans it’s time to pull up a chair by the hearth as Blizzard make some key changes to their popular online card game, based around the hugely successful World Of Warcraft.

There will be significant adjustments in an upcoming patch for Hearthstone which will help improve how players battle in it’s Arena game mode.

“One goal we have for Arena is that we want it to feel meaningfully different from any other way you might play Hearthstone.” says game designer Dean Ayala on Blizzard’s Hearthside Chat blog.

“Variety among all game modes is important to us, but an equally important goal is to have a wide range of experiences within each game mode.”

If you’ve stepped into the Arena then it’s no secret that the game can feel a little one sided, so it’s good to see Blizzard tackling these issues head on.

“This is an area where we feel Arena has some room for improvement.” Ayala continues. “When you first enter Arena and are offered the choice of three different classes, our goal is that you can look at those choices and choose any class without feeling disadvantaged because of their difference in power level.”

“Tools that we have available immediately involve removing cards from Arena completely—C’Thun-synergy cards and Purify are examples of this.”

The removal of some of these cards in the upcoming patch will hopefully help shift the balance of power and restore a more well rounded overall gaming experience.

“We’d like to avoid removing strong spells and weapons from the Arena, because they add to a lot of the unpredictability and excitement surrounding the possibilities outside the current board state. We’d also like to avoid removing iconic cards, since they are generally versatile and familiar tools to veteran and new Arena players alike.”

A list of the cards to be removed from 8 of the 9 classes (Paladin will be the exception with no changes) as well as the full statement can be found on the Hearthstone blog post.