‘Hearthstone’ Finally Arrives on Android Tablets

Although Pokemon and Magic: The Gathering still hold the majority of the paper-based collectible card game market, Blizzard’s Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft has made quite a name for itself in the digital card strategy game arena. Even the most popular Magic streamers took a break from MTG in the last week to spend a few hours on Twitch streaming content from the new Hearthstone expansion. In addition to the new fans coming in to check out the Goblins VS. Gnomes expansion, the game seems to be ready to capitalize on customers who have been excluded for the last year due to their mobile operating system of choice…

Hearthstone has been available on PCs and Macs since its early beta days, but up until recently mobile users were forced to slang digital cardboard on iOS devices only. According to a post on Battle.net today, Android tablet users can now get in on the fun. The app launched in select regions today (Canada, Australia, and New Zealand), but the company plans to bring the same app to the rest of the world very soon. The announcement comes as a bit of a surprise after the delays announced earlier this year, but we’re not complaining.

Blizzard CEO Mike Morhaime explained that the Android app is the first in a series of steps to make the game as accessible as possible for users…

“Hearthstone’s intuitive interface and approachable design make it a perfect fit for tablets, and we’ve put a lot of effort into ensuring players have a great experience on a wide range of Android devices… We’re excited to welcome Android players to the Hearthstone community, and we’re looking forward to bringing the game to even more mobile platforms—including phones—in the future.”

The fact that the game can be played on any desktop probably makes the mobile option seem less exciting, but it’s definitely one of Hearthstone’s major selling points. The drag and drop nature of the game was clearly designed with mobile devices in mind and, although the game works great on PCs, it really feels at home on a tablet. Connecting to the game though Battle.net also makes it incredibly convenient to manage your decks and collection from any of your compatible devices. For gamers on the go, starting an Arena run on your PC, switching to your iPad for a few rounds, then back to your PC seamlessly is incredibly convenient.

Android users who download the app will be able to access the full game, including the Goblins VS. Gnomes expansion immediately. New users will also be rewarded with a free booster pack of classic cards for completing a game in any play mode. If you haven’t given the game a shot yet, we recommend claiming your free cards and taking the unlikely Warcraft spin-off for a ride.

Do you plan to download Hearthstone when the Android app becomes available in your region? What do you think of the expansion so far? Let us know in the comments.

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Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is currently available on PCs and iOS tablets. The Android tablet app will arrive in North America within a few days.

Source: Business Wire

‘Hearthstone’ Finally Arrives on Android Tablets