1 year, that's how long I predict this game has left

Fortnite is a different genre and plays nothing like hots lol.

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A year? OMEGA!!!

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https://heroeslounge.gg/blog/post/division-s-update-sign-ups-will-open
It just started, i watched few games.

I don’t know how to interpret the disappearance of the pro aspect of the game. On one hand, I understand that larger tournaments do attract attention, but on the other, the way pros play differs wildly from the wider game base that keep the game afloat.

I also don’t understand why loss of Twitch viewing is so important. On one hand, again it shows that there’s interest in the game if people watch Twitch players in HotS… but that’s one person playing… It’s not like the whole audience is in-game as well (and if they are, that’s usually when the term 'twitch sniping comes into play)… So I can understand the lack of visibility, but I don’t see how that determines the game is declining.

Longer queue times, NOW we’re talking. While there is a bell-curve to the player population (only small portions will be exceedingly bad or exceptionally good, while the majority will be in the middle) I think there is something to say the game is declining due to longer time waiting for a match. Fewer players, the longer the search for a match with players in your category takes… I have noticed that it takes me a little longer sometimes, but I will confess this is during times where I expect most people are asleep, or otherwise busy.

I’m not calling whether the game is going to be dead or not… YET. This year I think will be critical for it in helping us judge. If the devs make a larger hash of this, or the changes just are NOT what we want, yeah… it’s gonna die. However, we don’t know what will be done, there’s still 11 months left in the year, and a lot can happen. I’m practical enough that I don’t expect to be playing this game forever, and I’d rather it die at its height than die after it’s chased me away, but that’s up to what’s coming… not where it’s at now.

I’m pretty confident the game will be still here and accessible in a year and beyond. The question is, how enjoyable will the game be if it loses too many players. It is not like Diablo 2 or Diablo 3, where you can enjoy the game experience solo.

One of the most consistent complains has been about match quality and the Matchmaker, both those problems will only get worse if this game loses players.

So yes, those people who state “that game will not be shut down” are probably correct. But I’m doubtful people will want to stay if the population falls too low to make reasonable queue times for Quick Match which would be even more of a clown fest in terms of skill disparity than we have now. Not to forget other modes like ranked where matching 10 people of roughly equal skill is a must to provide the experience the devs intended.

You only need to look to smaller servers, I have friends from Australia where HOTS was apparently quite popular and had a smaller but dedicated player-base. Apparently after the denouncement in December, nobody can get a match in TL for less than a 15 minutes wait, where as last season it was 5. Apparently HL takes them about 5 - 10 minutes, but they don’t have the stricter divisional rules of larger servers like the US and EU and these are the wait times for rainbow league matches.

These are just the 10 friends i have from Australia as we met through Diablo 3 where playing with high ping was somewhat less a problem, so I’m aware it’s anecdotal, but there are already threads like this on the forums from those in smaller regions. These regions provide at least an idea of how things might play out in larger regions if HOTS loses a significant part of its player-base.

The servers may stay on, the lights might be on, but it won’t matter if nobody is home.

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Are you just being daft?

An online game built like HOTS feeds on revenue generated from its popularity.

When that popularity wanes, the development slows down dramatically.

So it really does matter how popular it is…

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blizzard got to arrogant in terms of games and they just think in terms of money money money more money and more more more more money… so the quality goes away… thats the reason why they make so many mistakes lately because they doesnt think like artists anymore more like pure business guys and mixing in gamble stuff, tons of emojis that nobody uses to fill the treasures and so on.

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The pro aspect of the game has NOT disappeared in any way. It just isn’t HGC. I wish people would stop saying that. At least look it up before saying it doesn’t exist. This is from last week, and there was another one yesterday.

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There are plenty of online games that do not need the popularity of Fortnite, League of Legends, DotA2, or Overwatch to be maintained.

In fact, in the past, game developers were able to make games and keep them online with orders of magnitude less players playing them.

Those games are the exception, not the rule and you are being a drama queen about all this.

I don’t understand this point of view. Why exactly do we need a constant stream of new heroes? How many dozen heroes do we have already? If you get tired of playing a certain hero, go play one of the other 80+ heroes! In addition to heroes, HOTS has great map variety overall, and a bunch of cool skins…

I’d be happy playing this game for years without new stuff at all. We have all we need.

Yeah, Solitaire is a good example, you can play it alone… I all depends on a definition of dead, sure there can be people logging in 10 years from now and pewpewing minions in vs AI. But to get a decent game in off hours is pretty much impossible. I get anyone from gold to gms in my games. It’s just a pointless clownfiesta where one team slaughters the other. Sure there is roughly a 50% winrate, but none of these games (wins or losses) are any good.

It Will be the true test to see if there’s anything left of the blizzard we grew to know and love.

Blizzard at least the old blizzard never stop supporting their games. They flat out cancel heroes of the storm all together then we know the hostile takeover is complete.

That’s when I stop buying their products all together. Most of the people that made blizzard great have left the company. Their primary goal was to make great games. All Activision cares about is turning a profit

After all there are other evil AAA game corporations out there doing a much better job than Activision. Say what you will about them but electronica arts and Ubisoft still put out quality games now and then

Warcraft 3 is a game being played right now that has significantly less active players (by an order of magnitude) that is far from dead. There’s still a ladder that you can queue up into relatively quickly. There’s still a competitive scene. There’s still tournaments. And the game is getting a significant graphics upgrade in the next several months. The game is 17 years old.

No, you are being a drama queen.

  • Citation Needed -

You people and your absurd hyperbole.

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Oh you are just being childish. Or maybe thats just your nature.

No one is literally saying they will shut down their servers, but development will come to an end here soon. Thats literally what I typed, yet you somehow changed the definition to just having existing servers.

Also, please point out one that is still doing well or even playable that uses an MMR system when the population collapses.

Battlerite is younger than hots, but its pretty much unplayable now because it isnt popular.

I mean, maybe you mean games that have offline modes? I mean you do seem to shift your definitions to what suites you like a child would.

But continue to call me a “drama queen” because I am pointing out the real fact that in a year from now, ranked on this game will be unplayable.

But be a fan boy and convince people to keep sinking money into a game that the devs have literally said was done. Blizz thanks you for your cooperation.

It’s not hyperbole. And if you think it is then it shows how ill informed you are.

Blizzard NEVER, EVER, EVER ceases support of their games. Since you’re so in to citations, that fact (that they always support their games) is one of the most cited positive comments that have been made about Blizzard over the last 15-20 years. They’ve been supporting Warcraft III all these years prior to the announcement of reforged. You could still play a Starcraft 1 game before remastered came out.

If they flat out cancel HOTS, Blizzard is dead. The hostile take-over of the company we grew up with and loved will have been complete.

Hyperbole? Get a clue.

Stop. You’re just telling everyone that you’re an idiot.

The trouble is many people don’t know these games are going on. At least with the HGC there would be a notification on the launcher.

Maybe one of the hard working people on these forums could get a sticky going for notifications and schedules for the new pro games?

eeek, sorry I just saw this was a nerco, bad me!

At the rate this ship is sinking, it might not even last a whole year.

Still playing Heroes every day. The sky hasn’t fallen.

If you guys can’t play a game unless it’s popular at your high school, don’t play. Mostly nobody cares about Teenager BS like that.