Hearthstone wants to give players free Whispers of the Old Gods card packs

Those old gods might look scary, but they’re surprisingly generous.

During a streaming event today, Blizzard revealed that players can earn five more packs of Whispers of the Old Gods by completing a special launch quest that tasks players with winning two games of Standard (Hearthstone’s new mode that makes cards from older sets illegal). It’s a strategy that’s friendly for newcomers, since it will help them quickly build up a decent collection of new cards. It fits in line with Blizzard’s plan for Whispers of the Old Gods, which includes the addition of Standard, which begins the Hearthstone’s set rotation (new players were having a hard time catching up with players who had most of the cards from old expansions). The digital card game market is worth $1.2 billion a year, and Blizzard’s Hearthstone leads the field, making $20 million a month.