Ben Brode Leaves Blizzard Entertainment
Ben Brode has posted a very important announcement this afternoon. After working at Blizzard for 15 years and developing Hearthstone for almost 10, he has decided to leave the company.
Thank you, Ben, for all the communication you've given the community over the years, the laughs, and most importantly, this game.
Quote from Ben BrodeTo my friends, coworkers, and the Hearthstone community,
After 15 years at Blizzard and almost 10 years working on Hearthstone, I have made the incredibly difficult decision to embark on a new journey.
Man, that was a hard sentence to type.
I was 20 years old when I started here. My first role was ‘Night Crew Game Tester.’
Since then, Blizzard has been good to me. I got to cast esports events, announce BlizzCons, play in Rock Bands, write raps, and work with incredible people. But the biggest opportunity came in 2008 when I joined “Team 5.” The Hearthstone Team.
I am very proud of Hearthstone. I think we made an impact on the industry. People tell me that Hearthstone brought their family closer together, or that they became close friends with people they met at a Fireside Gathering. Others tell me they were inspired by Hearthstone to become game developers themselves. It’s incredible to be a part of something that touches so many people.
But as proud as I am of Hearthstone, I am even more proud of the team.
There is no team like the Hearthstone team. People have come and gone over the 10 years Hearthstone has been in development, but there’s something special about the Soul of the Team. We knew our most important product wasn’t the game, but the team itself. A great team can do great things, and I think the Hearthstone team is the greatest. It isn’t just a job. It’s a shared passion. We get to come to work and focus on the game we love and try to make it better every day.
We frequently check the Hearthstone subreddit looking for opportunities to improve the game. I have loved the silly memes, engaging in spirited debates, or even just being held accountable to our shared high standards for the game. We try to be highly available on social media, and I think our team helped push the envelope in this regard. It has been especially satisfying to me to see the team step up over the last few years and help engage in these ways as I became more focused on direction and less on actual design.
I get too much credit by virtue of being a public face, but the 80+ people on the development team are still there, and they are the ones actually making the cards, brawls, events, missions, and features. I am confident the game is in the best possible hands, and I’m excited to see where a new generation of leaders takes Hearthstone from here.
I am very fortunate to be able to take a crazy risk right now in my life, and I’m excited to be scrappy and a little scared. I’m going to help start a new company. We’ll probably make games, but we haven’t figured anything else out, yet. I’m looking forward to designing, programming, and actually creating things again. I’m going to miss the on-campus Starbucks, though. Dang.
Blizzard, thank you for taking a chance on me, and thank you for taking a chance on Hearthstone. I can’t wait to see what you do next.
And to the passionate community of players – I will miss you, and the laughs we shared together. Thank you for making being a part of Hearthstone so much fun for me. I’ve loved every minute.
Sincerely,
Ben Brode
4/20 isn't about those blazin' boys now... it's about the end of an era and the end of hearthstone :(
Really sad too see him go. I had the opportunity to meet him a couple of months ago. He is as charming on screen as in real life. Best of luck with your future endeavours.
I will never forget the first time I heard Ben laughing. Such a genuinely happy and positive person. He was always a big persona for the community and he will never be forgiven.
Wish you luck Ben and thank you for everything.
Witchwood =filler expansion
You better go BB, thanks for nothing and a special thanks from all f2p players
I quit HS no reason to continue playing anymore :(
Nooooo!! now we only have Peter and that cringy old guy T.T
Well... hearthstone just got about 150% more boring.
Maybe... maybe they could at least bring him in each expansion for the reveal streams.
The laugh can't leave Hearthstone. It can't.
Metzen (though quite understandably why) left Blizz, now Brode. Good luck to your future!
It's raining.
The expansion reveals and Blizzcon won't be the same, BibleThump
Thank you Ben Brode for this incredible game! Can't wait to see what you work on next!
Aw man. With his contagious charisma, I'm sure he'll do great starting up his own company.
Got sacked because Trashwood sold packs poorly, sad truth.
25% of Hearthstone players Pre-order The Witchwood. What's that about selling packs poorly?
LOLZ! You have won a Darwin Award !!!
It's not enough that they hasn't release the first Quarter of 2018 yet. But You've seen the future i guess... What a person !!!
Activision Blizzard to Release First Quarter 2018 Financial Results on May 3, 2018
<time class="datestamp" datetime="2018-04-06T16:45:46-0400">Published 4:45 PM ET Fri, 6 April 2018</time>Business WireSANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) intends to release its first quarter 2018 results after the close of the market on Thursday, May 3, 2018. In conjunction with this release, Activision Blizzard will host a conference call that will be broadcast over the internet.
Thursday, May 3, 2018
1:30 p.m. Pacific Time (4:30 p.m. Eastern Time)
Let state this : "25% of Hearthstone players"
Even if it's true, what is defo not, but whatever. At 2017, there were 70 million registered player for Hearthstone, assume for 2018 it's 100 million HEARTHSTONE PLAYER.
25% of that? U are kidding me right? 25.000.000 x 50(Euro/USD) = 1.250.000.000 Euro/USD just from pre-order, I hope you understand now...
If not calculated on ALL PLAYERS, then active players? How do you number "active players"?
I tell you how it works, they count numbers on every different way possible, then they submit the best, statistic wise. That 25% (even if there is any legit background on this number) can be calculated on 100.000 "active player".
There is a bit difference between 25.000 x 50 = 1,250,000 There is some different 0's wise at the end, don't you think?
As you can see they are able to say 25% on both examples, they just forget to mention how they calculated it. Don't get me wrong, the game is super popular, despite the last 2 expansion was bad.
Bye.
Really going to miss his reveal streams and update videos. I'm excited to see what he creates at his new company though!