Hearthstone: The Ultimate Collectible Card Game

Most of us know about Blizzard through their legendary World of Warcraft and StarCraft franchise, but in March 2013 at Penny Arcade Expo they announced their debut in the CCG genre with Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. Initially people expected it to fail and just outright get dominated by Magic: The Gathering. By early May 2015, there were more than 30 million registered Hearthstone accounts and it became clear that Blizzard had grasped the CCG genre in a way that Magic: The Gathering never could. So what makes Hearthstone the ultimate CCG Game? 

HEARTHSTONE IS BASED ON CHARACTERS AND LORE FROM WARCRAFT: 
The most essential ingredient to the success of Hearthstone early on was the fact that it sported characters and lore from the Warcraft universe.  This naturally attracted a large part of the Blizzard fanbase and gave Hearthstone a smoother start than most other CCG games that came before. 

HEARTHSTONE IS FREE-TO-PLAY: 
Many can argue that you can never get the optimal experience without spending some serious green. But when you look at the gold system, it becomes clear that while you do not get access to every card and expansion right off the bat they can be gained eventually by just getting through the daily quests. 

IT'S A DIGITAL CCG:  
This means that you don't need any organisers, binders or a huge collection of cards ready. Just dive right in, do the tutorial and start playing. This sets it completely apart from other CCGs. 

PLAY EVERYWHERE ON EVERYTHING: 
Visually Hearthstone has an artistic edge that far surpasses the other CCG games, even on a low-end PC. There is even a mobile version of the game which supports both Android and iOS, meaning you can play the game anywhere you want. 

A DECENT BALANCE OF SKILL AND RNG: 
First up let's get one thing straight, competitive CCG games will never be like competitive FPS, RTS or MOBA's. But as a CCG game the balance between skill and RNG is actually decent with Hearthstone. Unlike most CCG games Hearthstone always has a counter within; with the right strategy and deck you can always overcome that annoying popular deck on ladder. *cough* Face Hunter *cough*. 

BEST OF ALL WORLDS:
Hearthstone has managed to produce a unique combination of the pros from other CCG games without being influenced by their negative traits. Right now it is leading the genre like no other before and there is no doubt in my mind that that all CCG games in the future will take a similar route, so if you were planning to take a crack at the CCG genre, this is the game and now is time. 
Overall Hearthstone is a real masterpiece in the world of CCG, it is a genre that is still far from reaching its full potential but thanks to Blizzard's Hearthstone it is heading into the right direction.