From Blizzard, comes the world’s best digital card game Hearthstone, based on the lore of the Warcraft universe. The latest and sixth expansion ‘Knights of The Frozen Throne’ is available now! The game is available to download for FREE on iOs, Android, PC, Mac and EVERYTHING else that has a screen.
Magic: The Gathering
Magic: The Gathering was established in 1993 and created by Richard Garfield, published under Wizards of The Coast. Well over 17,000 unique cards have been made and I stopped counting how many expansion sets there are as of today (100 plus?), but MTG just released Hour of Devastation in July and continues to thrive with over 60 million players world-wide.
Hearthstone
Established in 2014 by videogame publisher Blizzard Entertainment and based on characters and lore from the Warcraft universe, Hearthstone is spun from the most famous online game ever created – World of Warcraft (over 100 million accounts created). The sixth expansion was just released titled ‘Knights of The Frozen Throne’ and there are over 70 million players world-wide.
Why is Hearthstone the superior card game?
#1. It’s cheaper.
Hearthstone Pack Opening
By thousands of dollars. MTG Booster packs cost upwards of five bucks a pop whereas Hearthstone players can choose to complete daily quests (tasks) and earn packs for FREE. I haven’t spent a dime on Hearthstone since the game started and I own most of the digital cards.
#2. No rules to worry about.
Hearthstone game board
Ever played a game of MTG and had to deal with nonstop arguments over tapping order and trying to dissect the rules when you just know that this dude is twisting shit to his or her advantage? In Hearthstone — the rules are set — there is no grey area — you play and the rules are taken care of, without having to deal with a greasy dirtbag who only lives life in order to win Magic The Gathering games.
#3. It’s easy.
Magic The Gathering Game board
The learning curve is perfect in Hearthstone. Anyone can play and not have to worry about getting hammered by some psycho with an overstacked deck loaded with insane combos that would make your head spin. My seven year old daughter can play Hearthstone and have just as much fun as any pro player who spends all day scouring the web for net-decks and new strategies. Hearthstone isn’t simplistic — it’s just smoother and less daunting to get into.
#4. It’s extremely accessible.
Magic The Gathering Binder
Man oh man do I “miss” the days of lugging around a giant binder of MTG cards, along with four or five deck boxes, and a container of dice… and so on… Hearthstone can fire up on your damn phone in three seconds and before you know it — you’re playing someone on the other side of the world.
#5. It’s trending better.
Hearthstone Tournament
Look — the stats are there. More people are playing Hearthstone than Magic. Is MTG making more money? Maybe — if I had to bet, most local comic book shops would probably go out of business if it weren’t for the profits they make on MTG… But that’s also part of the problem — Magic is an expensive hobby. Hearthstone players can have just as much fun playing for free as the hardcore guys who feel the need to drop 50 bucks US on 50 new packs every expansion release.
I grew up playing Magic: The Gathering. I loved the game and I have a fond appreciation for it — always have and I always will. But I stopped playing around the time the Urza’s Destiny expansion came out in 1999. I’m 32 years old now and Hearthstone came out in a time in my life where I, like most ageing male adults, felt retrospective about the culture that I was a part of as a teenager/kid. It hit all the right notes – scratching my nerdy gaming itch by providing me with an outlet that felt familiar, but improved and updated it in order to accommodate me as a grown-up.
South Park “Cock Magic” Scene
I can put Hearthstone away in my pocket and not deal with all the bullshit that comes with owning thousands of Magic The Gathering cards. I realise that MTG is available as a digital game as well, but I’ve tried it and whenever I do — I wind up just wanting to play the original physical game instead. It just doesn’t work as well in that medium. Blizzard wins – sorry Wizards of The Coast. You might be the Black Sabbath of card games, but Hearthstone is Metallica and they will continue to dominate this world until the very end.