![]() Hearthstone has had a presence as watchable content-through esports, streamers, and the like-since its beta. We have to get some of that out in New York!Ĭhe: Yeah, we would love to do something in New York, right in the city. It’s a summit of like-minded Hearthstone fans who want to get together and watch the highest level of play possible, but also to geek out with their friends in Hearthstone and meet new friends… One of the things we’re doing to give you that sense of atmosphere… there’s the main hall, you can watch Hearthstone matches there, and it’s all set up with tavern seating, and it’s all very social and then we have this whole separate hall which we’re calling the Tavern, and it’s got rows and rows of tables for people to play swift tournaments that we’re setting up for the audience… Again, it’s all to create something bigger than just the expectation of “Oh, it’s an esport, I’m gonna come and just sit around and watch things.” No, you’re going to come and you’re going to interact and get pulled into the world of Hearthstone. It feels like being in the Tavern.Ĭhe: One thing we try to approach, you know, our esports events for Hearthstone, has been to adopt the franchise approach, which is…the tournament is really just one massive Fireside gathering. I got out a little bit today and got to meet fans and hang out for a little bit… It feels like Hearthstone. On the ground here…obviously the centerpiece is the esports action, which has been, like Che said, really fun and amazing, but it also just feels like a festival you can play in side events, you can meet developers, you can talk to influencers, you can meet the casters-you can do all these different things, and it’s got a great vibe. It’s been great to see this event-this event I think is kind of putting all of those things that we liked most about each of those separate events together for the first time. This is our fourth pinnacle event for the Hearthstone year we went to the Bahamas in the winter, then we went to Shanghai, Los Angeles, and now here in Amsterdam, and at each one of those events we really pushed ourselves to try a lot of new stuff, and to get better really rapidly. Matt: I think there’s a lot of credit there to Che’s team and everyone that’s been working on this event. Tomorrow we go into a day of really…nail-biting elimination, and then Sunday is championship Sunday.Ĭonsidering being “away from the comforts of Blizzcon,” the show has looked great so far! Super happy so far with how everything turned out in the event scale and I think-even more important-we’ve had two incredible days of really good matches and stories just with our stats field of amazing players here. I think what’s most magical about this place in Amsterdam is the venue that we chose. ![]() It’s our first world championship away from the comforts of Blizzcon, so…a lot of thought went into the event. How is the tour going so far?Ĭhe: I think from an esports side, a lot of planning and…passion went into this project. You guys are calling from in the midst of the Hearthstone Championship Tour, which has touched down in the Bahamas, Shanghai, California, and now Amsterdam. On top of discussing their experience hosting these festival-like Hearthstone events, meeting fans all around the world, and contending with the struggles of travel, Che and Matt explain how they came to upgrading Hearthstone’s broadcasting quality: with a lot of “blood, sweat, and tears,” and a little help from the executive producers of the World Series of Poker. Hearthstone has always been a highly watchable esport, and now its broadcasters are matching that natural fit with commensurate delivery.īehind these new broadcasting tricks-and the entire process of organizing these events-are Hearthstone’s Esports Franchise Lead Che Chou and Esports Manager Matt Wyble, who took time out of their very busy weekend in Amsterdam to speak with me about how they’ve been running their show. Card draws were met with gasps and cheers from a live audience, reflecting the emotions of over 150 thousand viewers watching at home. During this event’s live broadcast, the game board zipped side to side on viewers’ screens, making way for standings updates and statistics, player statistics, and dramatic close-ups. Since last year, the Hearthstone esports team has broadcasted from the Bahamas, Shanghai, and Los Angeles, leading up to this weekend’s final 2017 HCT series hosted in Amsterdam. This year Blizzard took its Hearthstone Championship Tour on the road, and it’s never looked better.
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