Review + Giveaway: Heroes of The Storm

Update: We have already chosen our winners for the Heroes of the Storm giveaway and have replied to them below in the comments section. Apologies, but we weren’t able to get a lot of codes.

There’s always one thing that made Blizzard titles stand out from the rest of the pack. Through mass market analysis and research of not only its own gamer population but that of popular games, Blizzard always manages to release their multi-million dollar production titles at the ideal time. Interestingly enough, my addiction to League of Legends has just started to pass with time dedicated to amazing new games such as The Witcher 3, and the MOBA itch had begun yet again. Heroes of The Storm takes the best elements of e-sports’ most popular genre and hands them to you on a friendly, nostalgic platter.

My own experience with HOTS begins through the technical Alpha, and has been a stable part of a gaming routine for the past few months.

Story

Not much to be found in a MOBA title when it comes to the story of Heroes, but Blizzard has done its iconic characters justice with quality voice-over work and high polygon rendering. The events of HOTS described by heroesofthestorm.wikia.com describe:

The Nexus is a powerful[1] trans-dimensional storm, a strange limbo of clashing universes.[2] Worlds collide from across space, time, and even dimensions.[3] It operates by its own logic and set of rules;[4] for instance, at least for heroes, death is a but a “temporary setback.”[3] Combatants from Azeroth, Sanctuary, and the Koprulu sector have been sucked into it, fated to do battle.[2] New heroes are constantly arriving.[1]

So in short, stuff happens; now everyone needs to fight because they can and won’t really die.

Minimum Requirements

The game is a bit demanding depending on the state of your current system, but will run well for most people with a dedicated graphics card (Sorry Ultrabooks).

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS RECOMMENDED SPECIFICATIONS Operating System Windows® XP / Windows Vista® / Windows® 7 / Windows® 8 with the latest service pack Windows® 7 / Windows® 8 64-bit with the latest service pack Processor Intel® Core™ 2 Duo or AMD Athlon™ 64 X2 5600+ Intel® Core™ i5 or AMD™ FX Series Processor or better Video NVIDIA® GeForce® 7600 GT, ATI Radeon™ HD 2600 XT, or Intel® HD Graphics 3000 NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 650 or AMD Radeon™ HD 7790 or better Memory 2 GB RAM 4 GB RAM Storage 10 GB available hard drive space Internet Broadband internet connection Media None for the recommended digital installation Input Keyboard and mouse required. Other input devices are not supported. Resolution 1024 x 768 minimum display resolution

Gameplay

This is what Heroes of The Storm is all about. Matches will usually run around 15-30 minutes depending on player skill and objective control, in addition to map dependency. The maps currently implemented all have a similar objective focused layout, while also boasting unique mechanics and jungle monster positioning. In comparison to League of Legends, HOTS highly stresses the importance of objective control gameplay and focus targeting as healing can become quite ridiculous at times.

HOTS is a game that’s really meant to be played with friends. It’s staggering how much of a difference coordination can have throughout the match. This is when a match comes down to strategy more than individual skill. There’s another aspect that draws a crowd to it more than most would expect. Blizzard’s implementation of map variation has effectively given us a game that will almost never have mirror matches back to back. Being forced to prepare for any map also changes how a player thinks about the build they’ll be using and adapt throughout each match.

At launch, HOTS has 7 maps or “Battlegrounds” that players may be placed in through the quick match option.

There’s also everyone’s least favorite but most played map, Cursed Hollow.

In addition to the awesomeness that comes with Blizzard support and Battle.net, we get to do battle with some interestingly designed heroes. A roster that grows by the month has been tantalizingly begging at some solid game time with each and every iconic character. My current favorite being the Queen of the Forsaken herself, Sylvannas. She can be built in a number of different ways but excels most in structure and camp domination.

Another gameplay mechanic rarely seen in such titles is Blizzard’s decision on the removal of individual growth. What I mean by that is the shared experience of your party will directly impact your hero’s power. No items and no gold mean you’re forced to help each other (it’s honestly a miracle this game is getting popular with trends in the current MOBA community). Personally, it’s not my favorite system but it does play more into the theme of group-based progression which Blizzard has been adamant about since vanilla World of Warcraft. If you want to win, bring friends. Nuff said.

Store

Here’s my gripe with Heroes and Blizzard in general. I don’t want to know how much money I’ve spent or will be spending. While it may sound ludicrous, this is a factor that Riot considered early into League’s development. Seeing a real money value attached to a hero can be quite dissuading. The difference in spending x amount of “points” in comparison to a price tag of $10 for digital content which you don’t really own has many of my colleagues in the same situation.

Not to mention, $10 for a hero which won’t have an additional skin until you’ve played and won roughly ~ 30 or so matches with that specific character isn’t the most fun to see in your roster. Although, Blizzard has almost remedied this with Sales.

Heroes of the Storm’s sales have much more than a couple shitty old skins!

Gold is also accumulated at an incredibly slow rate outside of dailies, which require 3 games with a specific class, so don’t depend on it to get you any of the 10k champs. It’s almost impossible to buy any of those before reaching ~ level 25 which is also another issue of HOTS.

By the time you reach a high enough level to play ranked, there’s no way you’ll have enough champions if the cheaper ones aren’t your cup of tea. This can also be perceived as a pay wall and should have Blizzard’s immediate attention.

Final Reaction

5/5 Atoms

Heroes of The Storm has a long way to go before it’s a competitive game. Blizzard’s rush into the MOBA e-sports category, while admirable, is somewhat lacking in the title’s actual content. Unfortunately, this game really just isn’t that fun to watch. Most powerful combos will be abused and overused to the maximum, and with the removal of individual scaling, you also cut away at the “carry” title that has made so many gamers into pseudo-celebrities. We do although see some features in this game that I wish others would realize to implement much sooner, such as stored replays and an organized friends list with detailed information.

We have high hopes for the future of Blizzard, as it has given PC gaming unparalleled life since the first Orc on Windows 95. It does beg the question of just how spread out a team can be with a company that, now with the addition of Overwatch in FPS and Hearthstone on Mobile, covers all major genres of gaming. What we know now about Heroes of The Storm is that it’s just plain fun, looks great, plays smooth, and is similarly addicting to any other MOBA on the market. Seriously though, Blizz, stop with all the dailies, we need sunlight every once in a while.

We also promised you a giveaway, and so it shall be!

We have codes for three awesome heroes and their alternative skins including Uther, Muradin, and Kerrigan.

All you need to do is give us a like on Facebook and post below with who (or what) your favorite HOTS hero is and why.

Please also include your email, so we may send you some awesomeness in the next few days to get serious excited about!