Recently proposed changes to Hearthstone have provoked controversy within the community, but one that the developer feels will subside with time.
Druid has been dominating the meta ever since Knights of the Frozen Throne was released last month. It has come to a point when nearly every professional player is opting for the playable class, resulting in a rather bland competitive environment and a shift in balance.
To address the problem, the next patch will bring nerfs to Innvervate and Spreading Plague. In addition, basic cards for Warrior and Shaman will be adjusted as well. The announcement made many players question the decision making of the developer.
Speaking with IGN in a recent interview, Blizzard shed some light on the process that finalizes changes for Hearthstone and how criticism is always expected on the internet.
“I talked to some pro players privately on Skype – and discussed what kind of changes they want exactly, and talked to them about very specific cards, and got some positive feedback,” senior designer Mike Donais said, “so I think once things calm down, people will be pretty happy, because these are things that people have been asking for.”
He also highlighted that Andrey “Reynad” Yanyuk, professional Hearthstone player and owner of Tempo Storm, had specifically been calling out for changes to Innervate in recent weeks.
As for Spreading Plague, Blizzard simply “underestimated how good that card might be” and is now correcting the problem. The initial goal was to give Druid a way to deal with swarms. The unintended result only made the class incredibly strong against pretty much every kind of deck.
While the developer has been open about how it tallies with professional players before pushing significant changes to the game, the community is unlikely to mellow out any time soon.
