The Hearthstone Global Games Finals will be at gamescom 2017!

When the world’s watching, which Hearthstone nation will prove they’re the greatest on the globe? Prepare to find out as the Hearthstone Global Games draws to its epic conclusion from August 25-26 at gamescom in Cologne, Germany! With national pride on the line, as well as a share of the $332,000 USD prize pool, we’ll see which of the final four teams will step up when it matters most. The Teams Some of the game’s top competitors, as well as fan-favorite players selected by the card-slinging community, were offered the chance to represent their country in Hearthstone’s first-ever Global Games. Now we’re down to the final four teams, including two from Europe: Ukraine With some of the most recognizable names in Hearthstone representing Ukraine, it’s hard not to get excited about watching them throw down at gamescom. Aleksandr 'Kolento' Malsh and Eugene 'Neirea' Shumilin have consistently proven themselves at the top level, while Artem 'DrHippi' Kravets demonstrated his skills by reaching the Hearthstone World Championship finals last year. Along with Hunter specialist Mykola 'NickChipper' Velychko, Ukraine has beaten some top teams—including early favorites the Netherlands—on their way to the final four. Czech Republic Led by innovative deck-builder Stanislav 'StanCifka' Cifka, the Czech Republic has brought some fantastic play to the game board and had fun along the way—who doesn’t enjoy a mid-game snack live on stream? Former Hearthstone Championship Tour competitor Mikuláš 'Pokrovac' Dio will bring valuable high-level tournament experience to the semi-finals, while Jaromír 'JáraVyskočil' Vyskočil and Petr 'CzechCloud' Žalud have already shown that they know a thing or two about competitive play. United States Since its roster was unveiled, the United States has been among the favorites to lift the HGG trophy. Former Hearthstone World Champion James 'Firebat' Kostesich lines up beside William 'Amnesiac' Barton, David 'Dog' Caero, and Edwin 'HotMEOWTH' Cook—all top-eight finishers at recent major events. In addition to strong tournament performances, each player regularly shows off their abilities via livestream, climbing the ranks and building their strong fan bases along the way. South Korea South Korea arrives at gamescom following a convincing 3-0 victory over Mexico in the quarter-finals. Back-to-back winner of the 2016 Asia-Pacific Spring and Summer Championships Ilmook 'handsomeguy' Kang will be aiming to keep the good form going at gamescom, along with Hakjun 'Kranich' Baek—the only player to earn consecutive top-eight finishes in the World Championship. And skilled players Sanghyeon 'DDaHyoNi' Baek and Cho 'Flurry' Hyun Soo have already secured some vital wins during the tournament. Check out the official Hearthstone Global Games hub for team lineups and to review all the results so far. Format Teams need to bring one deck for each of the nine Hearthstone classes, with two assigned to each team member and one reserved as an “Ace Deck”. Matches will be played in a best-of-seven format, with the first team to win four games taking victory. Players must first decide their team's order of play, but they’ll be able to choose between either of the two decks assigned to them once they've seen their opponents line-up. Should a match reach game seven, the designated “Ace Players” from each team will face off using either an unused deck or the reserved “Ace Deck”. Casters Simon “Sottle” Welch Alexander “Raven” Baguley Daniel Falcone Daniel Gaskin Livestream Details Be sure to follow Hearthstone on Twitch to catch all the Global Games action with English commentary. We'll be adding additional details on other language streams below so stay tuned: English: Twitch – PlayHearthstone Stream Times Friday, August 25 – Starting at 15:00 CEST (6:00 a.m. PDT) Saturday, August 26 – Starting at 16:00 CEST (7:00 a.m. PDT) Prize Pool Only one team can fly the flag of their homeland in victory, but everyone will take home some prize money. Placement Team Total (USD) 1st $60,000 2nd $40,000 3rd& 4th $20,000 5th - 8th $6,000 9th – 16th $5,000 17th - 48th $4,000