Nationally ranked players freshmen Nick Lewis and David Hines have earned a spot at the top in the game Hearthstone, an online-card game played by over 28 million people around the world. Lewis is globally ranked 35, while Hines is ranked 134. Both were initially drawn into playing by the graphics and the mechanics of the game.

Lewis has played Hearthstone for about a year and plays 5-10 hours a day to train. Lewis was able to beat two professional players, allowing him to rank higher. Because he placed in the top 50, he was able to attend a large Hearthstone tournament where he placed 15th out of 2000. His interest in the game began when he saw videos on YouTube of people testing out the game. He then applied to be a tester, a person who reviews the game in a closed beta testing. His decision was inspired by his desire to explore more online card games. Lewis plays as much Hearthstone as possible to reach his goal of becoming top 16 in the world and attending World Championships. He plans to achieve this by playing more and competing with higher level players to learn. His strategy when competing is to first find the weak points of his opponent; once he achieves the feat, he targets the weakness and wins his match.

“I got inspired by my friends to play Hearthstone because they told me that I could make it and do it no matter what. They were my rock in that situation and I do not know what I would do without the support of my friends,” Lewis said.

Hines, on the other hand, is more of a casual player. He plays up to five hours on weekends to train. Both Lewis and Hines train by playing with higher level players and identifying opponents’ weak points. Hines holds such a rank because he believes that consistency is more important than playing excessive amounts. One of Hines’ goals was to achieve the legend rank, which is when a player reaches top 100 in the world.

Hines’ weekdays are occupied by track and cross country practices. Instead of treating Hearthstone as an intense video game, he plays it for fun. When he did become globally ranked, he was especially excited.

Hearthstone is a game where players from all around the world can play their friends, a spin on the typical card game. You can either make it very competitive or you can play for fun. The game allows you to play against other people with different cards and decks you make.

“I was really excited when I peaked because I achieved something that I have wanted for sometime,” Hines said. “ I once played against a professional player called Kaseytron and I was really excited that I won that match.”

With its fun and vibrant animation, Hearthstone is one of the most popular games played by people all around the world. The game has earned many awards such as Mobile Game of the Year, Best overall game of the Year, and Best Multiplayer game of the year. Lewis and Hines have worked hard to place in the top but must continue their hard work and dedication to their goals.