Hearthstone's Lead Designer Dishes On Consistency
Hearthstone Lead Game Designer Ben Brode is back with another developer insights video, this time tackling the sticky topic of consistency in Hearthstone, while also touching upon the differences between digital and physical card games.
Brode admits that druid cards like Druid of the Claw and Ancient of War are a bit inconsistent in how they work. Both give a stat-boosting choice, though one is a buff while the other is a transform effect, and thus silences and return-to-hand abilities affect them differently. Brode says that that's less of an issue in the digital realm because it's better to have easily understood effects that treat "edge cases" like silences a little differently. In the physical realm, you'd need a judge at all times to interpret those edge cases, but a digital CCG comes packed with its own judge -- the game itself -- to help speed things along.
I can see that, though there's an easy solution: Change Druid of the Claw's text to include a "transform" effect, as was done with newer cards like Druid of the Flame. Brode brings up this solution himself later in the video, that choosing between "4/4 with Charge; or 4/6 with Taunt" would help consistency but negatively impact the simplicity of making a decision between "Charge; or +2 health and Taunt."
Personally, I think it's more a case of being so used to something that changing it -- even if it makes it better -- seems confusing even when it's not, and that Hearthstone players would adapt with little to no trouble, and that it would be better for the game in the long run. What do you think?
Related Articles
About the Author

Jason Winter is a veteran gaming journalist, he brings a wide range of experience to MMOBomb, including two years with Beckett Media where he served as the editor of the leading gaming magazine Massive Online Gamer. He has also written professionally for several gaming websites.
Read Next
Warface Winter Update Revamps Maps, Adds Weapons, And More
Crytek’s free-to-play online shooter, Warface, is getting a shiny new update for the holidays.
By QuintLyn Bowers - 7 years agoYou May Enjoy
New Letter From Throne And Liberty Producer Shows Off Never-Before-Seen Bosses And Areas
I can't even front...this stuff looks incredible.
By Matthew D'Onofrio - 5 days agoTGS 2023: Wayfinder Teases New Lion-Warrior Grendel In Trailer By “Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse” Co-Director
Grendel arrives later this Fall.
By QuintLyn Bowers - 6 days agoTomorrow's Update For The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Brings Several Key Adjustments
The patch addresses various issues and gameplay enhancements.
By Matthew D'Onofrio - 1 week agoBlowfish's F2P Mecha-Space Game "Phantom Galaxies" Looks Neat...But Sadly It's NFT Based
To access Alpha, players need a specific NFT.
By QuintLyn Bowers - 6 days agoHere’s How To File A Claim For Your Part Of That $245 Million Fortnite Settlement
The FTC is now notifying people that they may be eligible.
By QuintLyn Bowers - 1 week agoBungie Shows Off Destiny 2's New Supers And Addresses The Crafting Issues
Also, the Jumpmaster campaign goes live and deterministic recoil for specific weapons was introduced.
By Matthew D'Onofrio - 5 days ago
Discussion (0)