Hearthstone open beta delayed, now coming January 2014

Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft developer Blizzard Entertainment has announced that the card battler's open beta has been delayed into January.

It follows a new Hearthstone patch that nerfs the Mage's freeze ability. Get the patch notes though the link.

Now, in a post on Battle.net, Hearthstone's production director Jason Chayes explained that his team wanted more time to see how players respond to the closed beta trial, and to take more time in identifying any issues that may be lurking under the hood.

He added, "We believe the right thing to do for the game is to not rush it out into open beta, but to instead hold onto it a little longer to make sure it’s ready for wider testing. At BlizzCon, we mentioned that we hoped to get the game into a state where it’s ready for open beta this month, but we’re just not quite there yet.

"The development team has been working hard to get this out before the end of the year, but our highest priority is that Hearthstone has an awesome launch when all gates are lifted and everyone can download it and play at the same time."

"We’re close to the open beta—very close. And to enter this final part of our beta phase, we need your help. Keep trying out new decks, reporting bugs, and giving your feedback on our forums. That’s the best way you can help the team get Hearthstone into everyone’s hands as soon as possible."

Chayes explained that Blizzard has now sent closed beta invites to anyone who opted-in before December 16, while all new opt-ins will end January 7. You can still apply for a beta key here.

What do you make of Hearthstone so far? Let us know below.

Via Eurogamer. Looking for Hearthstone strategies? We've got you covered.