Hearthstone has a new workaround to Chinese loot box regulations

By Marshall Lemon

In China, Hearthstone players must now purchase Arcane Dust to earn “free” card packs.

China has recently been cracking down on online games and gambling industries, which raises some issues for Blizzard Entertainment. Specifically, new Chinese regulations state games with loot boxes must clearly display the odds of obtaining rare and legendary items. Overwatch already lets players directly purchase currency to address the problem, but now Hearthstone has introduced a workaround: You can’t purchase card packs at all.

A new update to Chinese Hearthstone servers has disabled the ability to buy card packs, prompting players to buy Arcane Dust currency. According to Hearthpwn, Blizzard then rewards players with “free” card packs depending on the size of their purchase. You see? Completely different.

Whether this will satisfy Chinese regulation services is anyone’s guess, but since the laws took effect last month, we’ll likely find out soon. Regardless, the update only impacts players on Chinese servers, while North American and European players are unaffected.