Blizzard has been making sweeping changes to digital card game Hearthstone recently, beginning with a new patch that nerfed a pair of overpowered cards and following that up with an announcement on how the Year of the Mammoth will shake up the Standard format.
It seems that Blizzard is not yet done, as the company revealed that Hearthstone's Arena mode will also be revamped.
'Hearthstone' Update 7.1 Arena Changes
In a post in the official Hearthstone forums, Blizzard announced that Update 7.1 will make several changes to the digital card game's Arena mode to make it more interesting for players.
First and foremost, the format for Arena mode will be changed from Wild to Standard, with Blizzard explaining that the move is being made so that players will be able to create synergistic decks. One example given is the Jade Golem mechanic introduced in the Mean Streets of Gadgetzan expansion. With the move to a Standard format for Arena, players will have an increased chance of drafting a deck that utilizes the mechanic well compared to having to draft from the ever-increasing Wild format card pool.
The move to Standard from Wild in the Arena will put the focus back on building synergistic decks with smart card choices, compared to being lucky in the cards being presented as options. Blizzard, however, said that it will carefully monitor Arena mode after the change, with the possibility of making more changes in the future if needed.
In addition to the move to Standard, Blizzard said that it will be changing the frequency of how certain cards appear as choices in the Arena's deckbuilding process. The number of Common and Basic cards appearing during the drafting process will be lowered to allow for more Rare, Epic, and Legendary cards. Efficient common sweeper cards Abyssal Enforcer and Flamestrike, specifically, will appear 50 percent less, and neutral classic cards in the form of minions without any abilities will also show up less.
Blizzard, however, said that spells will appear more often in the Arena mode draft, as the distribution of spells compared to minions has been too low. Previously, Arena matches were won depending on how quick minions can be summoned, as there were not enough spells to punish overextending players. With more spells, Blizzard will look to address this dynamic.
Sweeping Changes To 'Hearthstone'
The changes that Blizzard has so far announced to Hearthstone started with a patch that nerfed Small-Time Buccaneer and Spirit Claws while making it easier for players to climb up the Ranked Play ladder.
Blizzard then announced that, with the launch of the Year of the Mammoth as the game's new Standard format, certain Classic cards such as Ragnaros and Sylvanas Windrunner will be pushed into the Wild format. In addition, the 45-card adventures released during the middle of the year will be replaced by another 130-card expansion, bringing the number of expansions released annually up to three.
It remains to be seen whether all of these changes will be good for Hearthstone, but at the very least, they look very promising for the digital card game as players wait for the next expansion to arrive.
