Alex Danger here! This week the boys over at Blizzard Entertainment started a round of closed alpha testing for their upcoming title Heroes of the Storm. By throwing their hat into the battle-arena ring, Blizzard fires up its faithful fanbase while expanding upon an idea from their Starcraft II modding community a couple of years back. Anyone who’s played one of Blizzard’s three prestigious video game series’ will undoubtedly see some familiar faces as they run, fly, and ride into battle.
People who have played other popular MOBAs, such as Dota 2 or League of Legends, will quickly notice some significant differences in the game’s play-style and focus. Instead of an emphasis on individual skill, Heroes of the Storm encourages the use of teamwork in order to achieve a common goal. Without any in-game items to boost certain stats, players are left with communication and a pretty strict set of hero abilities. Variable factors, such as the amount of damage or healing a spell does, scales to your current level. The sole purpose of minions in Heroes of the Storm is pushing lanes and “last hitting” minions is not a factor in how well you do in each game, as it has been with other games of a similar genre. Objectives on the map are only taken through a concerted team effort, and the ebb and flow of the game is largely dictated by control of key areas.
An important factor to keep in mind moving forward is that Blizzard has said they don’t want their new game associated with the MOBA genre, saying that it should instead should be seen as something different and unique. One would assume additional dynamics may be added in the future, but as it stands it will please a wide range of players both new and seasoned to the MOBA genre.
In its current form, all heroes can be unlocked by completing matches and accruing out-of-game currency. Those willing to shell out a bit of cash will find that doing so speeds up the process of unlocking heroes, as well as gets you all your favorite vanity items. In the coming weeks look for more updates on the state of the game. And if you find yourself dying of curiosity check out our Heroes of the Storm wiki, which has information on everything from Hero abilities to official news!