Update 7/12: Hearthstone's Production Director, Jason Chayes, has responded to the issues at HCT, saying, "On behalf of Blizzard and the Hearthstone team, I want to personally apologize for the limited advance notice we provided you regarding our deck list submission deadline for the 2017 HCT Spring Championship... Blizzard takes competitive integrity seriously, and we... Continue Reading →
Chinese Hearthstone Players Were Not Told Tournament Format in Advance
The Hearthstone Championship Tour Spring 2017 tournament took place this weekend in Shanghai. Sixteen players from around the world competed over three days to win first place and $60,000. Four of those players were from China—Dogggg, JasonZhou, Trunks, and xHope. All but Trunks went 0-2, and Trunks fared only marginally better with 1-2. None of... Continue Reading →
A Closer Look at China’s "Loot Box Law"
China recently implemented new laws requiring video games to disclose the drop rate of items in any kind of loot crate/box/pack sold by the game (for example, DotA, Overwatch, Counter-Strike, etc.), and while most companies complied, Blizzard has been somewhat reluctant to give out their algorithms. Instead of probabilities for each box, or even for... Continue Reading →
Chinese Hearthstone Players Hit US Visa Barriers
In her first round of applications for a US Visa, Hearthstone Global Wild Tournament winner SHRoyalBaiZe (or just BaiZe) was denied her visa, according to a post on her Weibo from June 19. On June 22nd, however, her second visa application was approved, allowing her to participate in the Tournament in the US next week.... Continue Reading →
Hearthstone Chinese Meta Analysis
Hearthhead, a site that focuses on all aspects of the online TCG Hearthstone, has started running a regular Chinese meta game analysis column that takes a close look at how players in China are playing the game. The site outlines the most popular and successful classes for the major competitive game types (Standard, Wild, and... Continue Reading →
Diablo 3 Arrives on the Mainland: "Sorry I’m late!"
Only two years after its release, Diablo 3 is finally making the Pacific leap to China where it will finally reunite with its Blizzard line-up brethren (Hearthstone, Heroes of Warcraft, Heroes of the Storm, StarCraft 2 and World of Warcraft). Diablo 3 had been banned while it was being reviewed by the Chinese Ministry of... Continue Reading →
Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm Approved for Chinese Release
UPDATE June 9, 2013: For a brief time, the Chinese Battle.Net website was changed to more closely resemble the US and Taiwan versions, including replacing Raynor's icon in the SCII logo with Kerrigan as a way to promote Heart of the Swarm. However, it was quickly changed back to the original layout, likely because a... Continue Reading →
Top Competitive Games
From a post titled "Gaming Frenzy Strikes Again: Examination of Popular Competitive Games" With the emergence of China’s dream team, LOL has become representative of this generation’s competitive gaming scene. When LOL was being considered to become an Olympic event, it sparked heated debates and brought competitive gaming forward to a new level. Now, with... Continue Reading →
Starcraft II: Heart of the Swarm Chinese Release
The new expansion to Starcraft II, Blizzard's wildly popular real-time strategy game, has a release date set for March 12. Heart of the Swarm (HOTS) will add new units and multiplayer changes, and is part 2 of the Starcraft II expansion trilogy (the first being Wings of Liberty). The release date for mainland China hasn't... Continue Reading →