Frenetic Pony

HOTS... no the other HOTS. The Lords Management one damn it!

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I would be extremely surprised. I don't think it's controversial to say that LoL is already the new WoW and that for many people it is the default choice of Lords Management simply because everyone they know plays it.

I also think that the idea that Lords Managements need to be boiled down to be accessible is clearly untrue.

Even though LoL is a streamlined dota, it is still far more complex than HotS. Yet, it manages to consistently have more concurrent users at any given time than all of Steam.

Lords Managements aren't a niche waiting for a polished accessible title to blow up. It's blown.

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I largely agree with Reyturner. And yet... Blizzard's business model since forever has been to take the mechanics from a really popular genre, simplify the hell out of it, and make it even more popular. While they might not succeed in this instance, I also can't rule them out. It's something they are bizarrely good at.

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For me, the insanely high skill and knowledge ceilings are most of the draw with Dota. 500+ games in, I feel like I still learn something new every game and that keeps me coming back for more. With those two factors almost completely boiled out, I'm not sure where the appeal lies, especially as an esport.

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For me, the insanely high skill and knowledge ceilings are most of the draw with Dota. 500+ games in, I feel like I still learn something new every game and that keeps me coming back for more. With those two factors almost completely boiled out, I'm not sure where the appeal lies, especially as an esport.

 

350 hours in, i decided that there was too much upkeep for my brain to keep on dotaing and i haven't played in months.

Hots is far more accessible for me at the moment:)

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I am playing this and really enjoying it. I've never really gotten into a lords management game before--I have no real interest in watching videos or reading guides or anything, so I never had the faintest clue what to do in LoL (I never even tried to get into DotA2). HotS is, for the most part, simple enough that I could start playing without feeling like I needed to spend a couple hours researching just to understand what is going on. Coupled to that is the fact that I have at most 20-30 minutes a day to game, which is pretty much exactly the length of a HotS match. 

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The main thing that confuses me is why Blizzard would make HotS and make it and market it for players who are interested in a more casual game than what's currently out there and try and make it into an esport.  Maybe it's less of Blizzard themselves pushing it and more the other organizations seeing a new potential market and jumping on it, but when I see companies like EG and Fnatic picking up Idra and Naniwa, the two best non-Koreans in Starcraft (and also players who had shitty attitudes and only got by because they were so good and even then still both got dropped by their team) it's kind of weird.

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I think basically they are just trying to make the game more accessible, not more casual, although some of the changes may have made it more casual, I'm not sure.

 

Based on I Saw Dasein's description, it seems like they've succeeded in the accessibility issue, you don't need to obsess over the game looking up guides & videos to try and get better at the game (incidentally, I think having to do that is what makes the typical LoMA that sort of perfect object of desire for a lot of people). The trick is will making the game more accessible make it less viable as a competitive game? Hearthstone and Starcraft 2 are certainly proof that accessibility and competition don't have to be opposed to each other.

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After trying unsuccessfully several times to get into LoL and never even playing Dota once I received my invite to HotS. I love it. It plays so well. Currently steamrolling through my practice rounds.

 

graddy #1782

 

Are people still playing this?

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I found HOTS to be really fun to play with the BF. After playing about 5 or so heroes we quickly settled into choosing specific main heroes and we had a lot of fun tearing up teams as a gruesome twosome. But now a few months in I kind of feel like I've over played the game. Perhaps if could do something extremely dramatic like select any hero from the entire pool at any time I might be more inclined to continue.

I spurned LoL a while ago but Smite and HOTS have kept me satisfied with LoMA's for a while besides the odd game of Doto 2. I think HOTS needs to hurry up and come out with a separate game mode or two to like Smite has. I find a much stronger urge to play additional games of Smite when I can have multiple satisfying games over separate modes rather than just having one or two games of HOTS and thinking "yep that itch's gone now" and booting up NS2 instead.

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Just got into HOTS...an acronym i will never tire of.  It's pretty fun....I mean it's more casual than dota at least in moment to moment gameplay.  Fun though, I enjoy the ease as I don't have time or patience for dota or regular lol anymore.

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I'm in though I mostly do coop for my dailies atm, pvp stresses me out when I'm not with friends

 

osmosisch#2711

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I fart around in this once in a while. Azmodan is fun.

 

I'm almost never physically situated to play PC games anymore these days, so it's rare, but TraumaHound#1840

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LawSheng#1739 in North America.

 

Also, hello! I was starting to get into Dota 2, but I just don't have time for various reasons. I quite like HotS because I can drop in and play a game and get out. 

 

That's the main reason I like it. It also feels less punishing. I like playing Dota but I'm terrible and just don't have the time (or let's be honest, ability) to get to an acceptable level of not terrible. This game feels more welcoming, and my basic skills from Dota really help (just don't die, whatever happens).

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Agreed on a lot of that.  I'm good at dota2 and lol, but I don't have time really nor do I want to spend that time on those games.  HotS games tend to be quicker paced so if I actually decide to indulge in a game I can have a good time.  Enjoy that I can more or less take it easy and not have to memorize much more than hero abilities.

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So I finally got a beta invite to this, and installed it last night, but did not play it yet. Although I actually like DOTA quite a bit (especially since that dumb year beast mode is over!) so I don't know how long HotS will last... so far my track record with non-DOTA lane pushers is that I get bored with them after a week or so.

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It's very different from DOTA, but I will say the group stuff works surprisingly well. You don't need a group that's super communicative just to get your butt over to where you need to be. The group objectives bring a completely different flavour to it. That and, as we were all saying, the pace.

 

It's actually made me want to go back to DOTA and go a bit mad with my Warlock and I WANT to do that but at the moment I have limited time so it's HotS for the near future. Also, despite the fact I'm not really a fan of any Blizzard story or lore, they make games I can't stop playing.

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Hey guys/gals, I don't normally post here but I'm looking for some cool people to play with.  Add me if you want to play:  Hasbin #1505

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Just yesterday I picked up a beta key, so I tried it out and it's fun! So far my only Lords Management experience is from the (quite everlastingly cool) Awesomenauts. I love the accessibility and dang it, it also just clicks with me because I know all the lords and where they come from. It's a silly difference, but it's a profound difference. I've got a connection to these guys, to the point where I want to play Anub'arak because I loved him in Frozen Throne, &c.

 

My Battlenet name is Leeuwenhart, probably, I have no idea.

 

Still in tutorial land though!

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My Battlenet name is Leeuwenhart, probably, I have no idea.

You'll have a bunch of numbers after that name. It'll appear at the header of your friend list.

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Just yesterday I picked up a beta key, so I tried it out and it's fun! So far my only Lords Management experience is from the (quite everlastingly cool) Awesomenauts. I love the accessibility and dang it, it also just clicks with me because I know all the lords and where they come from. It's a silly difference, but it's a profound difference. I've got a connection to these guys, to the point where I want to play Anub'arak because I loved him in Frozen Throne, &c.

 

My Battlenet name is Leeuwenhart, probably, I have no idea.

 

Still in tutorial land though!

Hit me up bro

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I've been having a blast playing this...I'm playing it a lot more than I ever played dota/dota2. I think it's to do with the fact that the game is less stressful and match times are shorter so I'm not so exhausted after one 80 minute match. I play mostly Valla and Tassadar, but I'm also enjoying Thrall who I played for the first time last night. I like how he just continually spams his spells and is rewarded for it with healing.

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I've actually been having a lot of fun with HOTS. 

 

Hit me up if you see me online. 

 

Deviluknow#1713

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