Got free time? Not Anymore! Hearthstone Open Beta Announced

Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft–the newest addition to the Blizzard Warcraft gaming family–is a fast-paced online strategy card game that has been getting a lot of buzz over the past few months for its engaging  (some might say addictive) yet easy-to-learn gameplay.

While the closed Beta has been ongoing for some time, Blizzard just announced this week that Hearthstone is now in open Beta.

Released in the US two days ago, the open Beta was just opened in Europe today.

The open Beta will allow anyone with a Battle.net account (and you can register for one here) to download the beta to their PC or Mac computers. Blizzard did announce at Blizzcon that Hearthstone will eventually be available on Android and i-devices, but that functioanlity is not expected until the second half of 2014.

The game is set in the Warcraft world, much to the delight of fans, but even people unfamilair with Warcraft–and/or strategy card games–should still find the game engrossing and entertaining.

Although the beta–and the game itself–will be free-to-play, it will include an in-game store that will allow players to purchase cards and decks as micro-transactions. Prices set during the Beta may change once the game goes live–however, any items purchased during the Beta will transfer with your account once the game has its official launch.

“Players choose one of nine epic Warcraft heroes to play as, and then take turns playing cards from their customizable decks to cast potent spells, use heroic weapons or abilities, or summon powerful characters to crush their opponent.” –Blizzard Entertainment

The beta is also fully integrated into the Battle.net account, so a player’s  real ID and Battle tag friends will be avaialble for to play or just chat to.

You can download Hearthstone here–but be warned, side effects are missing time and a disinclination to log off and be productive.

Have you played Hearthstone? What do you think? Loved it? Hated it? Tell us why in the comments!