Activision (ATVI) to Add Demon Hunter Class in Hearthstone
Activision Blizzard ATVI recently revealed Demon Hunter, which is the first all-new class to be added to Hearthstone, Blizzard’s smash-hit digital card game.
Since 2016, the game has operated under a yearly system with the latest one arriving in 2020 as the Year of the Phoenix alongside the release of Ashes of Outland expansion pack on Apr 7.
The new Demon Hunter class added to Hearthstone is expected to improve the game’s attractiveness. Moreover, Hearthstone’s Descent of Dragons expansion pack and the new Battlegrounds game is also expected to aid growth in user engagement.
Demon Hunter Class Details
The first character in the playable Demon Hunter class, Illidan Stormrage, the iconic Warcraft hero will stand alongside his brethren and face the fearsome demons of Outland.
Additionally, playable for free, new Demon Hunter Prologue missions will be made available on Apr 2 for players to combat, while the Demon Hunter class will officially arrive on Apr 7.
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Players who complete the pre-launch series that tell Hearthstone's version of Illidan Stormrage's origins will unlock the Demon Hunter class, along with 10 Demon Hunter class cards that will slot into the Basic set and 20 Demon Hunter class cards that will be slotted into the Year of the Dragon.
Moreover, Demon Hunter comes with the introduction of a new, class-specific keyword– Outcast. Outcast abilities will trigger if the card in question is played as the leftmost or rightmost card in the player's hand, granting a powerful bonus in turn.
Notably, the Demon Hunter's hero power, Demon Claws, will grant the hero an extra attack for a turn that costs 1 Mana, and abilities to summon powerful demons, attack with the hero directly, and card draw options to spare.
The Ashes of Outland Expansion Pack
The Ashes of Outland expansion will take players beyond the Dark Portal to the lands explored by World of Warcraft players in The Burning Crusade expansion.
Available for pre-purchase at $79.99, the Ashes of Outland Mega includes 90 Ashes of Outland card packs, one random Golden Legendary card, the Lady Vashj Shaman Hero, the Serpentine card back, four Arena tickets, and Descent of Dragons bonuses for the Battlegrounds game mode, which upgrade to the Tavern Pass* at the launch of Ashes of Outland.
Intensifying Competition
Activision faces significant competition from the likes of Take Two Interactive Software TTWO, Zynga ZNGA and Electronic Arts EA, among others in the gaming space.
Notably, Take Two’s Red Dead Redemption 2 has sold 29 million copies while Borderlands 3 shipping 8 million units worldwide.
Moreover, EA’s Apex Legends, NBA Live 20, Plants vs. Zombies, and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order have also gained popularity.
Nevertheless, Activision’s franchise strength, exciting content and new releases including Call of Duty: Warzone make it well poised for near-term growth.
Activision Blizzard currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
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