The Professionals speak about Heroes of the Storm

Written by Lauralania on July 17, 2015. Posted in Articles - Heroes of the Storm, Community, Heroes of the Storm, Interviews

How long have we all been a part of the Blizzard universe? For some of us we have been with it from it’s birth in the early 90’s and watched it blossom into the mature adult it is now. Blizzard has created multiple universes that enticed, enthralled, and captivated our hearts.

What is it that makes Heroes of the Storm such an Earth-shattering game in such a short amount of time? Blizzard has listened to its fans and brought the best heroes and villains from all across the realms together in a fight for supremacy.

Experienced Blizzard gamer, the gold making mage, Elvinelol said: "Heroes of the Storm is awesome for any Blizzard franchise lover! All those iconic characters from other games we all love and played!"

This statement holds true. No matter what game you have enjoyed from Blizzard Entertainment, there is something for everyone. For those who have no experience with Blizzard games it’s a great way to introduce yourself to the characters without being overwhelmed by all the different lore. With matches ranging anywhere from 10-30 minutes on average, it makes it easy to engage for all ages and audiences.

Anna Prosser Robinson of Missclicks said "My favorite thing about Heroes is the necessity of communication and working together. I love gaming because of how it connects people over a common passion. Heroes of the Storm does that, not only in community, but in the very mechanics of the game."

What differentiates Heroes from other MOBAs? Blizzard isn’t leaning on the big name to get players involved. Like most MOBAs, it’s free to play; and it has an in-game currency system so you can purchase heroes without actual money. With different play-modes you can play at your own pace.

NovaWar of LAGTV said: "Heroes of the Storm is a great entry in to a genre that many people have heard of but are scared off from. The learning curve is far less steep than others, and is team focused in such a way that you're never personally too far behind. If other MOBAs or similar game types have seemed interesting to you but felt too overwhelming, Heroes of the Storm is very likely the game that will pull you in."

How is Heroes of the Storm reaching out to players of every skill level? With different maps and play-modes such as: custom games, quick matches, ranked team, and solo queue there are so many options that fit each individual player’s need. Whether you are a new player, casual player, or fiercely competitive, there is something for everyone.

SolidjakeGG of Town Hall Heroes said: "I truly feel the biggest strength of Heroes is its accessibility. By removing items and making the game focused around objectives with team levels the game becomes a bit more intuitive. New players won't get yelled at for stealing the carry's farm, and they won't be scared away by the mountain of items in the shop they have an option to buy from. On the flip side, Heroes of the Storm still manages to be an incredibly competitive title. The way the game is designed with multiple maps allows for a massively diverse hero pool to be viable.

At the highest level, it comes down to teams not only having strong hero pools, but having a strong understanding of how to play all 8 maps, and finding ways to maximize their rotations without losing soak in lane. Similar to last hitting in LoL or DOTA, soaking waves of minions is crucial to stay ahead. The fact that the experience affects your entire team makes it even more important due to the fact that the game has power spikes with talents at lvl 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, and 20. These power spikes allow for timing attacks, and many compositions are reliant on timing attacks as the core of their strategy.

Some compositions will be hyper aggressive with Butcher or Kerrigan aiming to take a level advantage in the early game, and force their opponents away from the map objectives. Other strategies are more sustainable and focus on getting to the late game for massively powerful assassins like Kael'Thas and Azmodan in the late game. Competitive Heroes is just getting started, we really have no idea what the future will bring, and that's very exciting."

Gaming has evolved just beyond siblings sitting in their house competing for who gets the last cookie. We’ve gotten to see the birth of online massive competitive gaming. The time of eSports is upon us, with cash prizes upwards of $10,000, or more; and more players are moving from casual to pro gaming.

“What it’s like in the competitive scene of”… you ask? It’s explosive, it’s riveting, and it is intense. ESPN2 hosted the “Heroes of the Dorm” collegiate tournament on national television. It became the number one trending topic on Twitter with a multitude of reactions from fans worldwide. The ability to livestream and broadcast tournaments has sponsors clamoring over the best teams. Who can forget the Heroes of the Storm jacket worn by officials at the world heavy-weight championship Pacquiao vs Mayweather, one of the largest televised events in sports history?

FuriousD of Team 2ARC said: "I love competing in Heroes. I love the opportunity this game has given me and my team. Being able to follow our dreams and be rewarded for it is indescribable."

Not only has it opened up opportunities for professional players, but more and more positions are being built all within the community. For example, casters — which are people that specialize in adding a sense of urgency and flame to the all-too-often-heated matches being broadcast on streaming platforms and television.

Blizzard does such a great job of making games that are easy to pick up, but difficult to master. Thanks to its talent system and some other adjustments from MOBA-style games, Heroes of the Storm is fairly easy to pick up and just start playing. But if you watch some competitive Heroes games, you’ll see the difficulty comes in not only mastering how to play certain heroes, but also in quick decision-making and team synergy.

GillyweedSC2 of HeroesHype said: "I've always wanted to cast an eSport. I left my full-time job a little over two years ago and started working toward that goal by creating content and streaming. Anna Prosser Robinson and I started Eye on the Storm nearly a year ago with the goal of learning more about the game so we could cast it. So when MsHoney from Heroes Hype approached us about casting their amateur series, we were incredibly excited. I absolutely love casting the game. I have fun no matter how one-sided the game is, and I enjoy that it requires so much of my concentration. It's been an absolute honor to be a part of the Road to BlizzCon casts, and I hope I can continue to be part of all of these great events!"

Heroes of the Storm has created a game that is so complete in such a short amount of time. This isn’t stopping them from adding new heroes, maps, and incentives for players. The introduction of the treasure goblin at the beginning of each map is an excellent example. Players have the option of killing a quick moving, low health PvE character to collect bonus gold at the beginning of each map once a day.

As for me, I can’t wait to see you all in the Nexus.