In the coming weeks, the next phase of the Heroes of the Storm Technical Alpha will begin, and we wanted to let everyone know what changes lay ahead of us in the Nexus.

The Current State of the Technical Alpha

Heroes of the Storm is still deep in development, and during the past few months we’ve introduced a variety of changes to the game, including an overhauled UI, new heroes, skins, and more, but we’re not done yet! We have a lot of plans in store, and we will continue to iterate and improve the game throughout the coming weeks and months ahead.

As we’ve said before, the main goal of the Technical Alpha is to help us better examine how our infrastructure and tech will function across a much broader spectrum of machines and connection types. What’s more, inviting external Alpha testers allows us to take a closer look at our hardware needs so that we can be absolutely sure we’re able to support the entire Heroes population as the community grows. This phase of testing is necessary for us, and feedback from this phase continues to help us fine-tune the game’s features and balance prior to releasing wider scale testing. In order to make this process as fast and efficient as possible, we’ve needed to keep the scale of the testing relatively small and restricted, with the intention being that we would start small first, and then expand once it made sense from a development perspective.

We know that players from around the world are excited to help us test Heroes, and we’re pleased to announce that the next major patch will begin the Technical Alpha invite process for players outside of the United States!

New Regions Being Added to the Technical Alpha, and More on the Way!

These upcoming phases of testing will allow opted-in players from North America, Europe, Latin America, South East Asia, Australia, and New Zealand to have a chance at being selected to take part in the Heroes of the Storm Technical Alpha. During this upcoming phase of testing, we will continue to use the English client for all applicable regions until our fully localized clients are ready. Regional payment flows will be in place, so invited players will also be able to make purchases using their region’s accepted currency.

Our hope is that in the coming months we can release fully localized clients to support additional languages. Thereafter, we intend to widen our testing to also include Taiwan, Korea, and China. Following that, we are looking to implement fully localized clients for all remaining languages

How Do I Opt-in to Test Heroes of the Storm?

As mentioned previously, this initial testing phase includes a very limited pool of players, but if you haven’t opted-in to test Heroes of the Storm yet, now is the perfect time, because we’re continuing to invite more and more players into the Nexus on a regular basis!

In order to give yourself the best chance at gaining access to testing in the future, you’ll want to make sure you’ve opted in to Heroes of the Storm testing using the Beta Profile page found within your Battle.net Account. When prompted, you’ll need to download and run the System Check tool in order to attach your computer’s specifications to your profile and then check the Heroes of the Storm opt-in box, as pictured below.

As always, be extra mindful of shady characters who wish to steal your login credentials through phishing attempts, which are often disguised by falsified emails and websites. What’s more, Alpha keys are not necessary and are not being given out during this testing phase. Please be warned that any key generators or other offers for a Tech Alpha key are most certainly suspicious.

The best way to ensure an invite is the real deal is to avoid clicking any links. Instead, log in to your Battle.net account and check the Summary section to see if a Heroes of the Storm license has been added to your account.

Remember, This Is a Test!

As you play, level-up, and unlock new content please keep in mind that we will be performing several scheduled account wipes when we reach new phases of testing. When an account wipe takes place, any experience you've gained and any quests progress you’ve made, as well as any heroes, skins, and mounts you've unlocked, will be reset as though you're starting a fresh account. Don't panic! You'll receive a Battle.net Balance credit for any real money you’ve spent. Please also bear in mind that there will be a $325.00 USD (United States Dollar) or regional equivalent cap on all purchases until the next account wipe. Check out our recent progression system blog if you’d like to know more about leveling, gold, and quests, but keep in mind that this system will continue to evolve as the game develops.

Further Reading on the Technical Alpha

Since the Heroes of the Storm Technical Alpha launched in March, we’ve posted a variety of blogs and resources to provide players more information about this phase of testing. If you’re interested in learning more about the Tech Alpha, we highly recommend checking out the following blogs. Please keep in mind that although these blogs were accurate as of their original posting date, the game is still deep in development, so not all information may be up-to-date, and is subject to change:

Also make sure to keep an eye on HeroesoftheStorm.com, follow @BlizzHeroes on Twitter, and Like Heroes of the Storm on Facebook to keep up with all the latest news and updates!

Thanks again for your continued passion for Heroes of the Storm, and we hope to see you in the Nexus in a future round of testing!