The next time you switch a card or deck in Hearthstone, it may be on the real Nintendo Switch.
The designers of the popular online card game Hearthstone are open to the idea of porting the game to the newly launched Nintendo Switch. The game is currently running on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android systems.
Hearthstone currently has more than 50 million players worldwide according to Blizzard. It is also a staple event in many eSport competitions like Blizzcon and its own World Championship.
'A Good Discussion Worth Having'
In an exclusive interview, Hearthstone game designers Mike Donais and Matt Place were open to the idea when asked whether the game will soon find its way to the Nintendo Switch.
"I personally haven't talked about it but I'm more focused on card design," Donais said. "Hearthstone is available on iPads and phones, so it's a good discussion worth having."
Hearthstone is currently playable on mobile devices that run iOS and Android systems. The game can be played very quickly anytime and anywhere, a trait favorable to players who prefer using their phones or tablets.
The game is fast-paced and in bite sizes, a quality that benefits the Nintendo Switch. Unlike other consoles like the Xbox One or PlayStation 4, the Nintendo Switch immediately boasts a touch screen display, and its core feature of morphing into a mobile gaming device.
Bliizard Games On Nintendo Switch
While the statements of the game designers were not official, it remains to be seen if and when Bliizard will port its games to the Nintendo Switch. There many factors in play that can reduce these possibilities into mere speculations.
One of the technical factors is that Nintendo runs a very different ecosystem for its games. Although Nintendo claims that it is now easier for third-party game developers to come up with games for the Switch, the verdict on this is still not out. It's only been a month since the Switch launched and naturally, the market is still warming up to the concept of a hybrid console.
While the game is popular with longtime Nintendo fans, console and PC gamers are still holding their breaths for the next big title on the Switch not named The Legend of Zelda before they make the switch.
And this is where Blizzard currently finds itself. Recently, Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan said that porting Overwatch to Switch is a possibility. Although he did admit that moving the game is "very challenging."
So while fans of both Hearthstone and Nintendo Switch can dream, the stars still haven't aligned for this dream to be a reality. But being open is always a good start.
