This shouldn't come as much of a surprise given that it was leaked multiple times, but CDPR has now announced that Gwent will be getting an Arena game mode. Much like Hearthstone, you will be have to construct your deck by picking from a random selection of cards of the same rarity, though unlike Hearthstone all of the faction restrictions will be completely lifted! In other words, if you ever wanted to know what happens when you introduce Northern Realms' King Foltest leader into a Monsters swarm deck, you will soon have a chance to do just that.

The entry fee will be a rather reasonable 150 ore (or €2), and you will be able to play until you either reach 9 wins or you get beaten 3 times. In terms of rewards you can expect to see one guaranteed card keg for all participants, as well as bonus rewards for those that manage to score a large amount of wins. One of these bonus rewards is a chance at a premium Gold card, so once the Arena finally arrives I would advise you take it at least a little bit seriously.

And speaking of arrivals, I'm afraid I have some bad news. Despite CDPR dedicating an entire stream to showcasing the new game mode and the system surrounding it, the Arena is still a work in progress and its release date has not been confirmed just yet. It's supposed to be coming soon, but what exactly soon might mean, nobody really knows.

I also must admit that I am slightly skeptical about how enjoyable the Arena will be given how disincentivized synergistic cards are, but since the whole thing is still unfinished I suppose there's no reason to worry just yet. If you're wondering what has me so concerned, or if you just want to check out the Arena game mode for yourself, I'd recommend watching the most recent livestream. It is not a very long stream, but you should still get a pretty good feeling of what the Arena is all about. Enjoy!