Analysis
18 CommentsThe Hearthstone legendary cards you must craft ASAP
With last week's release of the Whispers of the Old Gods expansion and the introduction of standard mode, a lot of new players are checking out Hearthstone and old players who wandered aware are returning. Whatever your status, one cold truth of reality is shared by everyone: There are a lot of cards in Hearthstone, and it's hard to know which ones you really need.
In the smart video above, popular and talented Hearthstone streamer Kripparrian runs down his choices for the most must-have legendaries in the game right now. For his list, Kripparian splits the legendaries into three tiers of desirability. The best of the best are in tier one, the best class legendaries are in tier two, and strong but situational legendaries can be found in tier three. He stresses that legendaries in the...
Toys
16 CommentsCracker Jack abandons a century of prizes for QR codes and mobile games
Gen Xers who remember scoring the coveted weather predictor, smearing on a temporary tattoo or throwing out yet another useless magnifying glass today saw another symbol of their childhood annihilated: Cracker Jack is replacing the toy with a QR code for some mobile games.
The Toy Surprise has been in every box of Cracker Jack for more than 100 years — going back to 1912. But it now gives way to QR codes for baseball themed games, which one accesses after downloading another app, called Blippar, on their iOS or Android mobile device.
Oh boy, kid, here's your prize. Yay.
The games are "baseball-inspired mobile digital experiences" as Cracker Jack doubles down on its nostalgic ties to the game thanks to a song. The four "experiences" range from a dance cam...
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18
May 2, 2016
Their future is Epic: The evolution of a gaming giant
Find out how one of the industry’s biggest developers is changing its approach.
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12 CommentsFire Emblem and Animal Crossing are coming to mobile devices
Nintendo will release a pair of mobile apps based on its Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing franchises, the company confirmed today. Both are targeted for release sometime this fall.
Fire Emblem for mobile devices will be "more accessible in comparison to the Fire Emblem games for Nintendo's dedicated gaming systems," Nintendo said in a release, but will "offer the great value of a role-playing strategy game."
The mobile version of Animal Crossing will connect somehow to at least one of the Animal Crossing games for Nintendo's dedicated gaming systems, though the company didn't specify which titles would feature connectivity. Nintendo's most recent games in the franchise include Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival for Wii U and Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer for 3DS.
Nintendo...
Deals
31 CommentsHow to get 13 free Hearthstone: Whispers of the Old Gods packs starting tomorrow
Tomorrow marks the launch of Hearthstone's third full expansion, Whispers of the Old Gods, and Blizzard is celebrating by giving players a lot of card packs for free. In total, you'll be able to get 13 packs with just a little bit of effort. Here's how it works.
First off, simply logging in to Hearthstone after Whispers of the Old Gods launches will get you three packs of cards from the new expansion.
You'll also receive a quest upon logging in to win two games in the new standard format, which bans cards from the Goblins vs. Gnomes expansion and The Curse of Naxxramas adventure set. Winning those games will net you five more packs.
As a follow-up to that initial standard format quest, you'll receive another quest to win seven games in standard format. Pulling off this feat gets you...
News
6 CommentsSplatoon stuff is coming to Miitomo
A series of Splatoon-inspired items — headwear, clothing and more — are coming to Nintendo's social app Miitomo next week, giving squid-themed shooter fans the opportunity to dress their Miis like Inkling boys and girls. Getting your hands on some of these stuff is going to require some work, however.
Two items — the Inkling boy wig and Inkling girl wig — will be given away for free, provided Nintendo fans retweet the promotion's official hashtag enough on Twitter. At 10,000 retweets the boy wig will unlock, and at 20,000 the girl wig will unlock. Seeing as how the original post containing the hashtag (#Miitomo_Splatoon_RT) has already been retweeted more than 7,000 times, chances are good.
Other items will be available through Miitomo's pachinko-style game,...
News
24 CommentsHearthstone nerf alert: major changes coming to classic cards
When Blizzard announced that it was creating a new standard format for Hearthstone earlier this year, it also revealed that it would be tweaking an undisclosed number of cards from the classic set to ensure they wouldn't remain overly powerful in standard format. In a blog post today, Blizzard has finally revealed which cards are being changed and how substantially.
As suggested by Blizzard in various interviews leading up to this announcement, the Druid class core card were hit the hardest. The seven-mana-cost Ancient of Lore used to allow players to choose between drawing two cards or restoring five health. While its cost and stats, as well as the health restore, will stay the same, it can now only draw a single card if that effect is chosen.
One of the deadliest combos in the game...
News
8 CommentsThe Walking Dead: Michonne's finale launches next week
"What We Deserve," the third and final episode of the miniseries The Walking Dead: Michonne, will begin rolling out April 26, developer Telltale Games announced today.
The episode will be available next week on Android, iOS, Mac, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Windows PC, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Here's the synopsis from Telltale:
In "What We Deserve," feeling the weight of choices both recent and long ago, Michonne tries to protect an innocent family... but Norma and the vengeful Monroe crew are closing in. As reality shatters and the ghosts of the daughters she abandoned demand to be heard, your choices will determine who lives, who dies, and what redemption really means in a world gone to hell.
If you've played the second episode, "Give No Shelter," you can watch the video from...
News
9 CommentsHearthstone: Whispers of the Old Gods expansion arrives next week
The third full-sized expansion pack for Hearthstone, Whispers of the Old Gods, was announced over a month ago, but at the time Blizzard said only that the expansion would release "in late April or early May." Now the developer has revealed the exact date, and it's almost here.
Blizzard announced today that Hearthstone: Whispers of the Old Gods will finally be available next Tuesday, April 26, in North America and Europe. It will arrive in Asia the following day, April 27.
Must Read
Everything we know about Hearthstone's next expansion
Whispers of the Old Gods will introduce 134 new cards to the game, including "corrupted" variations on some classic minions. About half of the new cards have been revealed already, and Blizzard is planning to host a stream...
News
21 CommentsHearthstone gets new hero, Jurassic World new dinos during Apps for Earth fundraiser
Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft starts selling a new hero today — Azeroth's protector mage Khadgar — as part of a weeklong Earth Day promotion on iTunes with all proceeds for the $5 character going to the World Wildlife Fund.
Hearthstone is just one of 27 apps and add-ons for apps helping to raise money for the WWF as part of Apple's Apps for Earth fundraiser.
From today until April 24, App Store customers will be able to pick up special apps or DLC with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the WWF. Apple says it selected the WWF to partner with during the week surrounding Earth Day because of the group's core global focus which includes striving for the conservation of forests, oceans, fresh water, wildlife, food and stopping climate change.
Apps participating in the fundraiser (you...
Report
1 CommentHow the UN used a video game to raise awareness for land mines
Instagram is a massively popular social network where hundreds of millions of people share photos and videos with the world. It's the platform of choice for shots of fancy meals, poorly lit bar scenes and cute animals. Now it can also be used to play a video game — albeit one that's hacked together.
Earlier this week, the United Nations observed the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. The annual event began a: decade ago, on April 4, 2006, as a way for the UN to highlight mine action: the effort to clear land mines and related explosive devices from countries around the globe; educate people about the dangers of such weapons; assist victims of land mines; advocate for a mine-free world; and destroy stockpiles of mines. The UN currently supports mine...
News
4 CommentsDisney Crossy Road launches today for mobile devices
Disney Crossy Road — a new, Disney-themed version of the "endless Frogger"-style game Crossy Road — is launching today for mobile devices, Hipster Whale announced.
The game will include nine worlds based on Disney and Pixar properties, with more than 100 characters. Each of the worlds, which span The Lion King, Toy Story, Inside Out and more, will feature different challenges and music based on their respective setting. According to Disney associate producer Travis Marshall, the team wanted to offer support across Disney's entire portfolio, from its classic characters like Mickey to attractions such as The Haunted Mansion.
"Disney prides itself on is being fun for all ages," Marshall told Polygon. "We like to touch all demographics, and Crossy Road is something everyone can have fun...
News
22 CommentsClash Royale's top-ranked player has spent over $12,000 on the game
Clash Royale, the new mobile game from the developer of Clash of Clans, has become something of an obsession for some members of the Polygon office, as well as millions of other players all around the world. It's also received plenty of criticism for its microtransaction-centric structure that rewards players who are willing to dump cash into the game.
It's no surprise, then, that one of the game's most successful (and popular) players has poured a ton of money into it.
Writing in a Reddit AMA earlier this week, Clash Royale player Chief Pat revealed that he's spent a total of $30,000 on developer Supercell's games — $18,000 on Clash of Clans, which he's been playing for years, and a whopping $12,000 on Clash Royale, despite it just having come out at the start of 2016.
"I've never...
Culture
4 CommentsWhen Twitch plays Hearthstone, it goes ... poorly
We've seen Twitch play Pokémon. We've seen Twitch play Dark Souls. So what happens when Twitch plays Hearthstone against real live opponents? Well, uh, it's not great.
In the video above, YouTube content creator Disguised Toast shows off his recent experiments with Twitch plays Hearthstone. For the purposes of this, he created a program to allow his Twitch viewers to choose specific cards as targets for each click. He also made sure to disable the "End Turn" button to prevent the most frustrating trolling possible.
For as bad as things turned out, Twitch chat does come together to win a few games. Watch the beautiful struggle for yourself above. For more expert-level Hearthstone play, check out Polygon's full playlist devoted to the game on YouTube.
News
22 CommentsMiitomo launches March 31 in the west, Nintendo confirms (update)
Miitomo, Nintendo's social networking foray into mobile app development, will launch on Thursday, March 31 in North America for Android and iOS devices, the company said this morning. The app also launches in Europe the same day.
Miitomo has been out for about two weeks in Japan, and Nintendo said it would launch by the end of this month in 39 countries worldwide. It's a free-to-start social experience designed around Nintendo's Mii avatars, in which users create themselves, customize their Miis with clothes and other virtual items, and interact with friends on the My Nintendo network through a Q&A mode.
Must Read
Nintendo's first mobile game is a lot harder to put down than you might expect
Miis can be created through Miitomo's editor, designed with the help...
News
0 CommentsSee the action-packed trailer for The Walking Dead: Michonne's second episode
The Walking Dead: Michonne's second episode, "Give No Shelter," launches tomorrow, and developer Telltale Games is offering a glimpse into where this chapter will take the titular machete-wielding survivor with a brief but action-heavy trailer.
The minutelong trailer, which you can watch above, features scenes from the episode but doesn't seem spoilery.
Here's the synopsis of the episode straight from Telltale:
In Episode 2, 'Give No Shelter,' a daring escape from the floating colony of Monroe sees Michonne, Pete, and Sam running for their lives. An all too brief reprieve is soon shattered; the leaders of Monroe don't forgive and don't forget. With memories of her daughters bleeding ever further into Michonne's blurred reality, her world is becoming increasingly fractured ... just at...
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