Hearthstone: Battlegrounds Mode Is an 8-Player Auto-Battler
Blizzard has announced Hearthstone: Battlegrounds, a new mode that is an eight-player auto battler that features 24 unique heroes.
In this new mode that launches for free alongside the Descent of Dragons expansion, players will "recruit minions, strategically position them, and watch as they battle for supremacy."
Even though Battlegrounds will be free, players will unlock optional bonus features when they acquire card packs from the most recent expansion, all starting with Descent of Dragons.
At 10 packs, players will unlock comprehensive stat-tracking in Hearthstone: Battlegrounds. At 20, they can choose from three different heroes at the start of each match instead of two. At 30, players unlock the ability to "taunt of playfully communicate with their opponents using a visual emote system."
Hearthstone Descent of Dragons Expansion Announced
Blizzard has announced Hearthstone's Descent of Dragons expansion that features the most ever dragon cards in any expansion.
Descent of Dragons will add 135 cards to Hearthstone when it launches on December 10, 2019.
This "epic conclusion to Hearthstone’s first-ever year-long story line will arm players with draconic firepower—including the ability to transform into Galakrond, the mightiest dragon in Warcraft history."
The League of E.V.I.L. is trying to "bring doom to Azeroth by resurrecting Galakrond," and all five "E.V.I.L." classes - Preist, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior - will feature a different transformed version of this father of all dragons, each with a unique Battlecry and Hero Power.
Arrow: Felicity Smoak to Return for Series Finale
Production is currently underway on the final episode of Arrow, and star Stephen Amell made a very exciting announcement to mark the occasion. Emily Bett Rickards will return to reprise the role of Felicity Smoak one final time.
Amell took to Twitter to announce, "There’ll be a lot of news coming out about our final episode over the next few months. I prefer when you hear it from us. Welcome back Emily."
There’ll be a lot of news coming out about our final episode over the next few months. I prefer when you hear it from us. Welcome back Emily. pic.twitter.com/YlVpgoPWLi
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands Expansion Announced
The next World of Warcraft expansion, Shadowlands, was announced today at BlizzCon 2019. It will be released in 2020.
Shadowlands was revealed by way of a cinematic trailer featuring Sylvanas Windrunner doing battle with the current Lich King, Bolvar Fordragon. Sylvanas bests Bolvar, removing the Helm of Domination and breaking it in two, leaving the Shadowlands without a Lich King for the first time.
As the title suggests, Shadowlands, Warcraft's version of the afterlife, will be the setting for WoW's eighth expansion. It features five new zones, according to Blizzard: "the gleaming fields of Bastion, the scarred battlefields of Maldraxxus, the eternal twilight of Ardenweald, the opulent keeps of Revendreth, and the horrific Maw."
The Thing Was Originally Supposed to Be in Deadpool 2
Director Tim Miller said he exited Deadpool 2 because he didn't see eye-to-eye with star Ryan Reynolds on the creative direction for the sequel, which, if Miller had his way, would have featured Fantastic Four's The Thing, a more "comic accurate" depiction of Cable, and Morena Baccarin's Vanessa Carlysle becoming Copycat.
In an appearance on The Playlist’s Fourth Wall podcast, Miller revealed his Deadpool 2 would have had a cameo of "The Thing throwing down with Juggernaut." (Colossus ended up doing that in the final version of the film directed by David Leitch.)
Miller also wanted a more comics-accurate depiction of Cable, with the mutant from the future being 6'7" in the books -- something joked about in the final film at Josh Brolin's expense.
Blizzard President Apologizes For Mishandling Hong Kong Controversy
Blizzard Entertainment president J. Allen Brack appeared on stage during the Blizzcon opening ceremonies and addressed the recent controversy regarding Blitzchung and Hong Kong. Brack appeared apologetic for the commotion the incident has caused and signaled that the ongoing protests will not be affected.
“When I think about what I’m most unhappy about, it’s really two things. The first one is we didn’t live up to our high standards that we set for ourselves. And the second is, we failed in our purpose. And for that I’m sorry, and I accept accountability,” said Brack in the opening statement.
Diablo IV Announced at BlizzCon 2019
Through a lengthy, brutal cinematic trailer followed by a gameplay trailer, Blizzard has announced its isometric action RPG Diablo IV at BlizzCon 2019. It is being developed for PC, PS4 and Xbox One.
Diablo IV was the first announced game at this year's BlizzCon, which is a good thing considering how anticipated it was prior to last year's BlizzCon (to much fan disappointment). Diablo IV has been described by game director Luis Barriga as going back to the series' darker roots, where every monster and character has a sense of place. It will be dark and gothic, "a bleak and shattered hellscape bereft of hope and beset by demons."
Barriga also says that world is very important in Diablo IV, and the world of Sanctuary will be front and center. "Drowned undead and brutal goatmen" were mentioned, and Diablo IV's vision of hell was described as dark, gothic and medieval. You will also group and trade with other players, or murder each other in PvP zones.
Watchmen: 10 Burning Questions Answered (Updated)
HBO's new Watchmen series is showing us what became of the world of the original graphic novel 30 years after a giant squid monster changed the course of human history. It's a world that is uncomfortably close to our own in many respects, but in other ways the Watchmen universe circa 2019 is a wholly alien place. There's no Internet or smartphones. Robert Redford has been president since 1992. Mini squids raining from the sky is an ordinary occurrence.
Little by little, the series is pulling back the curtain and revealing just how much this world has changed since the classic comic and why. But for the full scoop, you really need to be reading Peteypedia. This tie-in website (named for the FBI agent character Dale Petey) basically serves as the equivalent of the supplemental backup pages in the original Watchmen comic. It features memos and documents pulled from the Watchmen universe, offering insight into plot points like the absence of the Internet and the controversy over President Redford's "Redford-ations."
BlizzCon Protests Begin After Weeks of Planning
Dozens of protesters have gathered at the entrance of the Anaheim Convention Center to voice their support for Hong Kong democracy. The organizers announced a full day’s worth of events to draw attention to protests in Hong Kong during Blizzard Entertainment’s annual fan event.
Outside the Anaheim Convention Center, protesters are handing out pro-Hong Kong t-shirts and holding pro-democracy signs. A truck is towing around a large LED sign displaying slogans and messages.
Organizers began planning for protests at BlizzCon weeks in advance following the company’s decision to punish Hong Kong-based Hearthstone pro Ng Wai “Blitzchung” Chung for supporting the Hong Kong protests during an official Blizzard live stream. Blizzard punished Chung almost immediately, banning him from Hearthstone competition for a year and stripping him of his winnings.
New WWE 2K20 Patch Fixes Warping Characters, Crashes, and More
2K has announced that a new patch is now live for WWE 2K20 that fixes some of the notorious problems that the game has been suffering from.
The patch notes claim that the update “addresses reported concerns regarding the following issues and we expect to roll out additional patches in the near future to address additional concerns”.
Issues fixed by the patch include characters “warping” and moving unnaturally around the arena, hair physics, clipping issues, interactions with objects such as tables and ladders, and referee actions. Problems with on screen button prompts, crashes and freezes, and hit detection and aiming are also fixed by the 1.02 update.