Hearthstone: Reign of the Black Empire

Blizzard Entertainment has been running the collectible card game Hearthstone since March 2014, with a major expansion being released every four months since 2017. The next one is Reign of the Black Empire. This expansion features the four Old Gods as legendary neutral cards: C'Thun, N'Zoth, Yogg-Saron, and Y'Shaarj.

Each God possesses four unique abilities and, rather than attacking, can invoke two of these powers each turn. These abilities are among the most powerful effects in the set, so each can only be used once per game. Once all four abilities have been used up, the Old God can attack and join the battle directly. There is also a new keyword, 'Assemble', which merges two cards into a powerful new one. This involves adding a minion to one's hand and replacing part of its card text with that of another minion from a curated pool. Assemble allows players to adapt their forces to suit their strategy. One week before the expansion, the Journal is being revamped. This brings together all the quests, achievements and events from previous adventures in one place.

Blizzard Entertainment: "Found within the Hearthstone Journal, Journey brings together story, Journey Quests, rewards, events, and seasonal experiences into a single campaign that unfolds throughout an expansion. As you progress, you'll encounter major characters, unlock new content tied directly to the season, and experience Hearthstone's story in a deeper and more immersive way than ever before. From voiced vignettes featuring key characters to text-driven narrative moments, Journey tells its story through a variety of interactive experiences."

Alongside the traditional mode and Solo Adventures and Mercenaries, which unfortunately have been sidelined, there is still Battlegrounds mode. This remains very popular and is essentially a game within a game. In this mode, players engage in an auto-battler against seven opponents, or in co-op mode against three teams of two. At the start of each round, players can purchase units during a time-limited purchase phase. Afterwards, the player's units automatically battle one of the seven opponents at random. Synergies, upgrades, and unit combinations offer a wealth of tactical possibilities that change every season. New additions to this mode include the Aberrations, a new minion type centred on discard synergies, and the Deity keyword, which enhances the power of their gods.