, with commentary by game director (and former StarCraft II balancing expert) Dustin Browder.
The 17 minute match--games of Heroes of the Storm are said to be much shorter than in, say, League of Legends and Dota 2--involves two teams of Blizzard testers on the revamped Dragon Shire map, with both teams vying for control over the incredibly powerful Dragon Knight.
Also shown in action are some of the game's more esoteric skin options: a glam rocker version of the Elite Tauren Chieftain, hook-throwing Stitches in a chef's outfit, and a mech version of StarCraft hero Tassadar all feature.
The video is also another chance to take a look at Abathur, the intriguing specialist unit that can't attack other units directly but can temporarily turn himself into any allied character with his ultimate ability.
One of the ways Heroes of the Storm separates itself from its genre stablemates by sharing experience points across the whole team, instead of having players level up independently.
Heroes of the Storm is currently in alpha, and anyone interested can currently opt-in for a chance to eventually play the game when it comes out. There's no official release date. Fingers crossed for 2014, then.
The future is looking bright for eSports. Theres a growing community of college League of Legends, DotA 2 and StarCraft II gamers who are pushing their universities to give eSports the same status as club sports like hockey and lacrosse. Tony Yuan, founder of WardBaron.com, is working with college students to help achieve this endeavor.
Right now in the United States, 32 of the best StarCraft II players are competing in the first-ever video game tournament sponsored by a Hollywood movie studio. Lionsgate Home Entertainment is promoting the Blu-ray, DVD and Digital Video release of Enders Game with the tournament, which features $20,000 in cash prizes.
Choi "Polt" Seong Hun, who is only the fourth player in the world to complete the Triple Crown by winning major tournaments in North America, Europe and Asia, is currently a grad student at the University of Texas Austin. He talks about the implications of Hollywood validating eSports and offers some of his favorite movies in this exclusive interview.
, was announced during BlizzCon in November and is expected to launch later this year. The subscriber numbers were announced as part of Activision Blizzard's latest earnings report today detailing fourth-quarter and full-year sales.
Other highlights from the earnings announcement today included Activision Blizzard revealing that Call of Duty: Ghosts was the best-selling title in terms of units and dollars during the quarter ended December 31. It was also the best-selling game on both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in terms of units and dollars, Activision Blizzard said.
As of December 31, the Skylanders franchise has generated more than $2 billion in worldwide sales, Activision Blizzard said. The company has sold around 175 million Skylanders toys worldwide, according to internal estimates.
For the year ended December 31, Activision Blizzard posted revenue of $4.34 billion, down from $4.99 billion in 2012. Digital net revenue was $1.57 billion for year and made up 36 percent of total. For the quarter also ended December 31, revenue was $2.27 billion, compared to $2.60 billion last year.
Looking ahead to 2014, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said it is looking forward to launching titles like Bungie's Destiny and new entries in the Call of Duty and Skylanders franchises, as well as Diablo III expansion Reaper of Souls on March 25. Also in 2014, Activision Blizzard will release three free-to-play games: Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, Heroes of the Storm, and Call of Duty Online. Kotick said these games have "great global potential."
"Free-to-play as a business model has now achieved scale, both in the West and in China. Hearthstone, which released in open beta on PC last month and which Blizzard Entertainment plans to expand this year to tablets and smartphones, is already attracting millions of players with strong engagement and monetization in the West and China, putting it on track to join World of Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft as their fourth mega franchise."
Activision is currently holding a call to discuss these results and answer questions. Check back soon for more.
, was announced during BlizzCon in November and is expected to launch later this year. The subscriber numbers were announced as part of Activision Blizzard's latest earnings report today detailing fourth-quarter and full-year sales.
Other highlights from the earnings announcement today included Activision Blizzard revealing that Call of Duty: Ghosts was the best-selling title in terms of units and dollars during the quarter ended December 31. It was also the best-selling game on both the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in terms of units and dollars, Activision Blizzard said.
As of December 31, the Skylanders franchise has generated more than $2 billion in worldwide sales, Activision Blizzard said. The company has sold around 175 million Skylanders toys worldwide, according to internal estimates.
For the year ended December 31, Activision Blizzard posted revenue of $4.34 billion, down from $4.99 billion in 2012. Digital net revenue was $1.57 billion for year and made up 36 percent of total. For the quarter also ended December 31, revenue was $2.27 billion, compared to $2.60 billion last year.
Looking ahead to 2014, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said it is looking forward to launching titles like Bungie's Destiny and new entries in the Call of Duty and Skylanders franchises, as well as Diablo III expansion Reaper of Souls on March 25. Also in 2014, Activision Blizzard will release three free-to-play games: Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft, Heroes of the Storm, and Call of Duty Online. Kotick said these games have "great global potential."
"Free-to-play as a business model has now achieved scale, both in the West and in China. Hearthstone, which released in open beta on PC last month and which Blizzard Entertainment plans to expand this year to tablets and smartphones, is already attracting millions of players with strong engagement and monetization in the West and China, putting it on track to join World of Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft as their fourth mega franchise."
Activision is currently holding a call to discuss these results and answer questions. Check back soon for more.
The groups for the best StarCraft 2 League in Europe have been released. With a wide range of play styles and strategies, we are bound for a show!
