Video: Ben Brode dishes on the secrets of Hearthstone ~ USA Latest Games

Video shot and edited by Justin Wolfson. Click here for transcript.

When we got a chance to talk to Hearthstone game director Ben Brode recently, we wanted to go beyond the kind of strategy and card-level gameplay analysis that has already flooded the Internet in the past four years. So, in the tradition of our Unanswered Mysteries of Overwatch video, we took a deep dive with Brode into the behind-the-scenes design process for making Hearthstone's thousands of cards.

We don't want to spoil all of the entertaining anecdotes Brode shared with us during our wide-ranging talk, but keep an eye out for the following as you watch the video (or read the transcript):

Brode's thoughts on "the optimal state of the game" and what makes it so hard to achieve
Which popular cards Blizzard never expected to see high-level play
The never-seen card concept that would have allowed for "a 3-mana 600/600 minion"
The hidden Lich King vocal tracks that few players ever heard in the course of play
The secret song that unlocks a volcano explosion on the Journey to Un'goro board
The design thinking behind mechanics like Fatigue and Echo.

Are there any other games you'd like us to give the Unsolved Mysteries treatment in the future? Let us know in the comments and we'll see what we can do!

Read on Ars Technica | Comments