Activision Blizzard released its financial results for the second quarter of 2018, and in its report the company revealed that preorders for the next Hearthstone expansion — The Boomsday Project — are tracking further ahead at this point prior to its launch than any other Hearthstone expansion. The Boomsday Project releases for PC and mobile on August 7.
Hearthstone is free-to-play, but new expansions offer cards in preorder bundles. A pack of digital cards usually costs around $1.50, but these special offers give out packs at a value of $1 for one pack. Past preorder bundles have offered 50 packs for $50. The previous set, the Witchwood, gave 70 packs for $50. The Boomsday Project has a 50 for $50 bundle as well as 80 for $80. The $80 bundle also gives players a new hero portrait for the Warlock class, Mecha-Jaraxxus. So while you get the same card-for-money deal, the extra hero portrait is a nice bonus for fans. Also, some players will just want as big a bundle of cards as possible.
The new expansion is also adding more mechs to Hearthstone, a tribe players enjoyed from the Goblins vs. Gnomes expansion at the end of 2014 and has been out of favor since the Standard rotation (the main way most people play this card game) of April 2016, when most mechs went to the Wild format.
The digital card game market will be worth $1.5 billion this year, according to gaming intelligence group SuperData. Hearthstone remains the most popular game in the genre, and new sets keep its players engaged and encourage them to spend more money. Strong preorder numbers for The Boomsday Project show that Hearthstone’s popularity is staying strong.