HOPE for HOTS - NEW PATCH! And what it means for the future of Heroes of the Storm - Grubby

Introduction and Surprise Patch Note

The video begins with the host expressing surprise at a recent patch note release for Heroes of the Storm, a game that Blizzard had previously announced to have ceased active development over a year ago. The host discusses the lack of balance patches in the past one and a half years.

Surprising Patch Note Release

• Blizzard's announcement of ceasing active development for Heroes of the Storm over a year ago made the recent patch note release unexpected.

• It has been about one and a half years since the last balance patch was released.

• The host mentions finding previous patches from March 29th and July 12th, but they did not cover them extensively.

Speculations on Future Changes

The host speculates on possible reasons behind the recent patch note release and its implications for the future of Heroes of the Storm. They discuss changes in Blizzard's approach to platform exclusivity and potential influences from Microsoft's acquisition.

Changes in Platform Exclusivity

• Recent releases of Diablo I and Overwatch 2 on Steam broke Blizzard's tradition of keeping games exclusively on their Battle.net platform.

• Good Old Games (GOG) also started selling Warcraft Battlenet Edition, further deviating from Blizzard's previous practices.

• This shift towards other platforms may be influenced by Microsoft's acquisition of Blizzard, which faced regulatory concerns regarding anti-competitiveness.

Bug Fixes and Preparation for Steam Release?

The host discusses possible reasons behind the bug fixes mentioned in the recent patch notes. They speculate that these fixes could be part of preparations for releasing Heroes of the Storm on Steam or improving its readiness for a larger audience.

Bug Fixes and Preparation

• Active players may have continued submitting bug reports, leading to the bug fixes mentioned in the recent patch notes.

• The host suggests that a significant bug list might have been stored at Blizzard from the time of active development.

• Speculation arises that these bug fixes could be part of a preparation patch for a potential release on Steam or to make the game more accessible to a wider audience.

Conclusion

The video discusses the surprise release of a recent patch note for Heroes of the Storm, which had previously ceased active development. Speculations are made regarding changes in Blizzard's approach to platform exclusivity and potential influences from Microsoft's acquisition. Bug fixes mentioned in the patch notes are also discussed, with speculation about preparations for a Steam release or improving readiness for a larger audience.

Hero Difficulty Reclassification

The patch notes mention a hero difficulty reclassification that can be found on The Heroes of the Storm subreddit. This change is seen as interesting for the active Blizzard player base, and it may indicate more attention coming to the game soon.

Hero Difficulty Reclassification

• The patch notes mention a hero difficulty reclassification.

• More information about this reclassification can be found on The Heroes of the Storm subreddit.

• This change is seen as peculiar for a game that has been neglected in the past year.

• It suggests that more attention may be given to the game in the future.

• This update could be relevant for new audiences coming into the game, especially with Heroes of the Storm being available on Steam.

Potential Payment Changes

With an increased player base from Steam, there might be a need to reopen payment changes. Currently, buying heroes outside of free-to-play rotation is required, but there could be profit incentives to bring in more players.

Reopening Payment Changes

• If there is an influx of new players through Steam, it might lead to reopening payment changes.

• Currently, buying heroes outside of free-to-play rotation requires payment.

• There is a profit incentive even in the current structure of Heroes of the Storm (HotS) to bring in more players.

• HotS has unique positioning as a MOBA that doesn't take itself too seriously and offers beautiful graphics and audio design.

• Reinvigorating the player base through new heroes and attracting more players could turn a profit for Blizzard.

Strengths of Heroes of the Storm

Heroes of the Storm has several strengths that make it appealing to new audiences. It offers a less toxic environment compared to other MOBAs, has beautiful graphics and audio design, is accessible with well-known Blizzard characters, and provides shorter game durations.

Strengths of Heroes of the Storm

• Heroes of the Storm is uniquely positioned as a MOBA that doesn't take itself too seriously.

• It offers a less toxic environment compared to games like League of Legends.

• The game has beautiful graphics and audio design.

• HotS is not as complex as Dota 2, making it more accessible for new players.

• It features well-known Blizzard characters with rich backstories.

• Game durations are relatively short, lasting between 12 to 20 minutes.

• Losing in HotS doesn't feel as punishing compared to other MOBAs.

Potential Balance Patch Changes

There is hope for balance patch changes in Heroes of the Storm. The addition of one new hero per year could be great marketing for the game and help reinvigorate the player base.

Potential Balance Patch Changes

• There is hope for balance patch changes in Heroes of the Storm.

• Adding one new hero per year could be amazing marketing for the game.

• This could attract more players and potentially turn a profit for Blizzard.

• Suggestions are made to add cool heroes that are not from Overwatch.

• Input from viewers on which hero they would like to see is encouraged.

Patch Notes Overview

A summary of some key changes mentioned in the patch notes, including camera follow release timer increase, camera panning improvements, floating text display updates, and experience globe adjustments.

Patch Notes Overview

• Camera follow release timer increased from 6 to 12 seconds for better control over camera movement .

• Camera panning can now be done further away from the hero with camera lock enabled .

• Floating text display for last hits has been updated to a golden display .

• An issue with active ability hotkeys being draggable in the hotkey menu has been fixed .

• Holding down shift or control will now register as having the announcement modifier held when clicking on the top bar .

• The base experience value of experience globes has been increased from 80 to 160, allowing for faster leveling up .

• The experience value of melee minions has been reduced, incentivizing more fighting and less laning .

Experience Globes and Last Hits

Discussion about how experience globes work in Heroes of the Storm and their impact on gameplay.

Experience Globes and Last Hits

• Experience globes are small balls that appear after creeps die.

• Previously, last-hitting a creep would give full XP without an experience globe.

• In Heroes of the Storm, you need to be near the wave to collect experience globes.

• Melee minions now provide double XP through experience globes compared to before.

• This change encourages more fighting and less passive play.

Impact on Gameplay

The impact of changes in Heroes of the Storm, such as increased XP from melee minions and incentivized fighting over laning.

Impact on Gameplay

• Changes in Heroes of the Storm incentivize more fighting and less laning.

• Zagara, Chromie, and other heroes who could previously nuke waves from afar no longer gain XP easily.

• Double XP from experience globes makes gameplay more fast-paced like Turbo mode.

• Some players may dislike these changes as they reduce emphasis on last-hitting and laning.

The transcript is already in English, so there is no need to respond in a different language.

Interface Update and Health Bars

The interface in Heroes of the Storm (Hots) has been updated to display health bars for Misha, Olaf, Bok, and Eric. This change indicates that the development team had a pre-planned list of updates and improvements for the game.

Interface Update

• The interface now shows health bars for Misha, Olaf, Bok, and Eric.

• This update suggests that the Hots development team had a list of changes prepared in advance.

Planned Changes and Development Process

It is unlikely that these interface updates were made on a whim. They are part of a planned list of changes that the development team is working on. The development process involves assigning developers to tackle items from a backlog during specific periods called sprints.

Planned Changes

• The interface updates were not random but part of a planned list of changes.

• It is unlikely that one person made these updates without any prior planning.

• The Hots development team follows an agile development process with sprints lasting around two weeks.

• Developers may work on items from the backlog individually or as part of a group.

Bug Fixes and Improvements

Various bug fixes have been implemented in this update, including fixing issues with D.Va's health bar display and healing recap. Additionally, improvements have been made to clutch healer functionality and damage registration for the protector map.

Bug Fixes and Improvements

• Fixed an issue where D.Va's health bar only displayed her pilot's health during combat healing recap.

• Clutch healer will now only register healing done to the health protector instead of all heroes.

• Protector map now registers damage prevented by protection.

• Fixed an issue where evading targets were not having their armor reduced by certain abilities.

Map Fixes and Hero Adjustments

This update includes fixes for specific maps like Hanam Temple and adjustments to hero abilities. The changes aim to address issues with scaling values, armor reduction, and bonus damage to structures.

Map Fixes

• Hanam Temple map has been fixed for certain issues.

• Recon Camp no longer has its scaling value reset when captured.

Hero Adjustments

• Venom Nest's armor reduction is now removed by stasis or invulnerability.

• Adrenal Overload now applies to channeled basic attacks on Tyrael.

• Bomber Strain Locust now deals bonus damage to enemy structures.

Development Process and UI Updates

The development process at Blizzard involves managing a backlog of feature fixes and changes. A developer or group of developers work on these items during sprints. It appears that a developer specializing in UI updates had the opportunity to work on the Hots backlog.

Development Process

• Blizzard manages a backlog of feature fixes and changes for Hots.

• Developers are assigned items from the backlog during sprints.

• A developer specializing in UI updates worked on the Hots backlog.

Ability Changes and Bug Fixes

This update includes ability changes for various heroes, bug fixes related to revealing cloaked targets, and updates to hero difficulty ratings.

Ability Changes

• Basic attacks no longer activate Blade of the High Lord while blinded or if the target is evading.

• Stab ability now only reveals the target itself instead of the surrounding area for two seconds.

• Spike Burst ability reveals the affected area for 75 seconds.

Bug Fixes

• Blade of the High Lord was dealing bonus damage from sadism on physical attacks while blinded or against evading targets.

• Toxic Nest no longer reveals attackers to Abathur during the arming phase.

• Locus damage no longer displays as a critical against structures.

Hero Difficulty Rating Update

• Bomber Strain's difficulty rating has been updated from hard to very hard.

Dragon Queen Healing Fix

An issue with Alexstrasza's Cleansing Flame ability granting excessive healing when Dragon Queen is active has been fixed.

Dragon Queen Healing Fix

• Cleansing Flame no longer grants Alexstrasza healing equal to the bonus health provided by Dragon Queen when activated.

Healing Invulnerable Allies and Fixes

This section discusses the mechanics of healing invulnerable allies and fixes related to it.

Healing Invulnerable Allies

• Healing can go through invulnerability, unlike attacks.

• Previously, there was an issue where healing abilities were not displayed on the talent tab of the scoreboard while Dragon Queen was active. This has been fixed.

Fixes

• Attacks will no longer grant stacks of Dynamic Optics while blinded.

• Various fixes have been made to address issues with blind not working properly.

• AOE spells now reveal their target icon properly.

Ability Reveal Changes

This section highlights changes related to ability reveals in Heroes of the Storm.

• Bounce abilities like Grievous Throw, Twin Cleave, and Guillotine now reveal their targets.

• Zeratul's Cleave ability also reveals its effect area.

• The Feel the Heat talent icon has been updated.

• These changes are live in the latest patch update for Heroes of the Storm.

Hero Difficulty Updates

This section covers updates to hero difficulty ratings in Heroes of the Storm.

• Diablo's difficulty has been updated from medium to hard.

• Samuro's difficulty has been increased to very hard due to bug fixes and balance adjustments.

• Samuro had a bug that allowed him to activate image transmission immediately after using Hearthstone, providing excessive sustain. This was fixed in previous patches.

• Windwalk healing has been increased from 1% per second to 3% per second, and Way of the Wind healing has been decreased from 5% on cast to 4% on cast.

• Way of the Wind now correctly increases Samuro's self-healing score instead of his overall healing score.

• Chen's difficulty has been changed from hard to medium.

Ability Reveal and Hero Difficulty Updates

This section continues the discussion on ability reveal changes and hero difficulty updates in Heroes of the Storm.

Ability Reveal Changes

• Various abilities have been updated to reveal their targets, including Grievous Throw, Triple Tap, Wildfire Bear, Divine Storm, and more.

Hero Difficulty Updates

• Artanis, Diablo, and Anub'arak have been classified as hard heroes. However, the speaker expresses disagreement with Artanis being considered hard due to his mechanics being more about hitting things to regain shields.

• The speaker explains that playing Diablo effectively requires comboing abilities like Charge and Overpower into walls for maximum impact.

• Escaping with Diablo can be challenging for players who misuse his abilities.

Brightwing Changes and UI Improvements

This section covers changes made to Brightwing's abilities and UI improvements in Heroes of the Storm.

Brightwing Changes

• Brightwing's difficulty rating has been updated from hard to easy.

• Fixes have been implemented for issues related to her Phase Shift ability not providing healing upon arrival or healing vehicles when cast on them.

• Invisible Friends talent now previews the total healing it will provide over time.

UI Improvements Wishlist

The speaker shares their wishlist for future updates in Heroes of the Storm:

• One new hero per year

• Improved reconnect system

• Improved replay system

• Ability to open loot chests while queuing

• Ability to buy cosmetics and use them while queuing