Recent reviews by the goblin grinder

Absolutely no reason to play this game.

Each mode has major flaws with no overall objective or incentive to perform well or continue playing. The free Phantom Draft is so easily exploitable as each draft can immediately be scrapped and re-drafted until you have an unbeatable deck, this makes playing the 'casual' mode extremely frustrating and boring. The expert version of Phantom Draft requires entry tickets which are only obtainable through purchasing them, or sacrificing your collection of cards (20 cards for a ticket). This entry fee requires you to sacrifice any hope of constructed play without forking over additional cash. The constructed mode is a complete joke as to have any chance of winning you must invest tonnes of money to form a viable deck, with no progression (levels, ranks, MMR, anything). The gameplay becomes extremely stagnant as you verse player after player in the casual modes with more time and money than you, without any interaction at all (no emotes or forms of prestige). The playable decks featured in the Call to Arms arena only throw salt on the wound as they highlight the fun that could of been. Bot matches have been the only form of real entertainment I've experienced from the game so far. Even if this game was free I would not recommend it in its current state. It is a damn shame I couldn't refund this monetization scheme of a game.

I do not understand why this game costs money at all and do hope Valve decides to change this disappointment of a new title as the core mechanics and gameplay are of high quality, but pale in comparison to the major issues.

If you loved the first game you will without a doubt love this! Improves on almost everything available in the first game while adding a loot element and considerably more story. The micro-transactions are not an issue to me personally, as the abundant in-game currency can obtain both types of lootboxes (although with a lower chance of receiving rare rewards compared to the other lootboxes available). The skill tree was also noticably lack-luster as most branches on skills were obviously superior to others, this flaw was redeemed to me through the rare player loot available but that too felt quite shallow. The addition of fighting pits, influential betrayals and the expanded storyline was also very refreshing. Aside from minor issues such as an occasionally unreliable parkour, the most significant issue (in my opinion) was the seemingly unevolved AI. The actions and some finishers are so clunky and predictable it is frustrating, the AI produced (for uruks) seems to be a replica of the first game and is most noticably present during pit fights, where advantages and strategy seem to go out the window (stop ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ taunting).

I applaud and encourage all criticism of the micro-transactions and WB's disgusting business decisions but those acts were not enough to dissuade me from purchasing the sequel to one of my most cherished games of all time.

9/10