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[FieryBalrog]

SolForge is on iPhone, along with numerous other CCGs, and I don't see what's so special about Hearthstone that they'd not be able to make it work, most games have no trouble showing the 2 lanes of battlefield and your hand on the screen.

I've played a lot of Ascension on my iPhone 4, and the app is really damn slick and does a great job with very limited screen space. However, it's still a pretty janky way of playing the game that involves a lot of squinting and zooming in and out on cards.

 

[Minsc]

Solforge doesn't have targeting like this does. I bet many a mage are going to be screaming when they hero power the wrong thing because of how tiny everything ends up being

Well, not exactly the same, but you do need to select targets in SolForge too. Tap to select hero power, tap to select target could work, or even line drawing with a highlight around the selected minion would also work.

It comes down to comfort too. I play match-3 games on the iPhone and they use 12x12 grids or more, where you need to select individual squares, Hearthstone is only 7 at max. Obviously if you're not used to controlling precisely on a touch screen or are just bad at it (large fingers/etc), it's going to suck. You could always just buy a larger phone if the iPhone 6 is larger like rumored, or switch to an Android phone, since it will run on Android phones I believe, and they are much larger.

Edit: A good example would be to look at Disco Zoo even, on the iPhone. That uses a 5x5 grid in a Portrait mode, with plenty of room to go another 2 columns in a landscape view. I have never once out of 10s of thousands of times hit the wrong box in disco zoo, that's probably how big I'd expect the minions to be on the phone.

 

[Mobius and pet octopus]

I can see hearthstone working on my galaxy s4 but I accidentally hit the back button way too often when just holding the phone. So I hope they are smart about button functionality.

 

[dk_]

Does HS work on the iPad 1? How's the performance?

 

[Q8D3vil]

I ended my arena Huntard run (0 UTH) with 9-3
Lets see how much further i can get with 3 UTH (3-0 so far).

 

[borghe]

Does HS work on the iPad 1? How's the performance?

no. minimum ipad2/mini.

iPad 1 gets no support these days due to not being able to run iOS6 or higher.

 

[dk_]

no. minimum ipad2/mini.

iPad 1 gets no support these days due to not being able to run iOS6 or higher.

Shit! I read it requires iOS 5 so I thought I'm lucky. :-(

 

[Cystm]

Dear Hearthstone players,

Please stop running Big Game Hunter in every single deck no matter what your build is.

Thanks,

Cystm.

 

[Minsc]

Dear Hearthstone players,

Please stop running Big Game Hunter in every single deck no matter what your build is.

Thanks,

Cystm.

When Rag is nerfed (aka never) and not an auto-include for every deck, maybe.

 

[borghe]

the calls for nerfs have finally stopped (thank god). The set is just how it is...

I do hope they have adequate beta testing for the next expansion and continue the (necessary) trend of not making updates to cards in the live game. beta test/playtest the shit out of an expansion, tune, and release. After release leave it alone. If something is truly truly broken I get the need to hotfix.. but tuning simply should NOT happen in the live game (aka nerfs). period.

 

[Interfectum]

When Rag is nerfed (aka never) and not an auto-include for every deck, maybe.

Thinking of Rag, I had a Druid wild growth (turn 2) and then innerv, innerv (turn 3) and drop Rag on me. I was a rogue, didn't have any removals in-hand (or any that I could use yet anyway)... got destroyed. >.<

 

[Haly]

Eh, it's the one big advantage of a digital card game. Wizards needs an entire staff for playtesting their shit because they can' ban/errata cards willy nilly. The Hearthstone guys don't have nearly as much experience/manpower to do what Wizards does, so I don't mind if they regularly nerf/buff.

 

[Salex_]

I really don't understand how a "competitive" game has so much RNG and other bullshit comeback mechanics. Cards full of random effects, tons of 15+ from the hand direct damage combos, ridiculous comeback legendary cards, added RNG from Arena (2+ of the same cards), etc.

 

[ACE 1991]

I really don't understand how a "competitive" game has so much RNG and other bullshit comeback mechanics. Cards full of random effects, tons of 15+ from the hand direct damage combos, ridiculous comeback legendary cards, added RNG from Arena (2+ of the same cards), etc.

Yep, RNG matters just as much as skill does.

 

[FStop7]

Dear Hearthstone players,

Please stop running Big Game Hunter in every single deck no matter what your build is.

Thanks,

Cystm.

Uv gawt tha bayst en mah saights

 

[Llyrwenne]

I've been thinking, and there's only one card in the game right now I'd really like to see nerfed (aside from cheap a-hole legendaries like Ragnaros); Flamestrike. 4 damage to all enemy minions without drawback is just too powerful IMO. Consecration does only 2, which is manageable. Arcane Explosion does only 1, which is also manageable. Swipe does 4 only to one target and 1 to the rest. Hellfire does 3, but also to friendly minions and your own hero.

Nerfing Flamestrike's damage isn't necessary, but at least make it a 10 mana card or add some text like "You can't play any spells next turn".

That said, I don't expect Blizzard to nerf or buff anything, and I'm fine with that.

 

[chickdigger802]

how does balance updates work? Do they just have a big patch notes? Do they refund anything (doubt it)?


btw: is winning only achievable by knocking out enemy hero in this? No 'combo lead to auto win' or a deck out?

 

[Haly]

how does balance updates work? Do they just have a big patch notes? Do they refund anything (doubt it)?

They occasionally change cards and raise the amount of dust you get from them to the same cost of crafting them, essentially letting you disenchant them and craft another card of the same rarity.

btw: is winning only achievable by knocking out enemy hero in this? No 'combo lead to auto win' or a deck out?

Yeah, there are no alternate win-cons yet. When you try to draw cards from an empty deck, you take damage for each card you try to draw instead of auto-lose like Magic or YGO.

 

[Beant]

how does balance updates work? Do they just have a big patch notes? Do they refund anything (doubt it)?


btw: is winning only achievable by knocking out enemy hero in this? No 'combo lead to auto win' or a deck out?

Only by knocking out enemy hero i am pretty sure. If you run out of cards you start taking damage after drawing them. First card draw with no cards = 1 damage, second = 2, etc.

 

[partyphone]

I've been thinking, and there's only one card in the game right now I'd really like to see nerfed (aside from cheap a-hole legendaries like Ragnaros); Flamestrike. 4 damage to all enemy minions without drawback is just too powerful IMO. Consecration does only 2, which is manageable. Arcane Explosion does only 1, which is also manageable. Swipe does 4 only to one target and 1 to the rest. Hellfire does 3, but also to friendly minions and your own hero.

Nerfing Flamestrike's damage isn't necessary, but at least make it a 10 mana card or add some text like "You can't play any spells next turn".

That said, I don't expect Blizzard to nerf or buff anything, and I'm fine with that.

I think it's fine at 7 mana. it's easy to play around and if they play it on turn 6, 7 or 8 they're likely not doing anything else. which is great tempo for you.

if anything it needs to be made a rare or epic so it doesn't show up in arena as frequently(although I think there are better ways to balance arena).

 

[Llyrwenne]

I think it's fine at 7 mana. it's easy to play around and if they play it on turn 6, 7 or 8 they're likely not doing anything else. which is great tempo for you.

if anything it needs to be made a rare or epic so it doesn't show up in arena as frequently(although I think there are better ways to balance arena).

Clearing all my < 5 health minions by playing one card isn't great tempo for me.

Also am I the only one here who has imposed himself some rules on emotes?

I usually greet people at the start and squelch them when they don't reply. If the opponent makes a mistake and emotes it, I do the 'sorry' emote and usually get a thank you in return. I counter 'Well played' with a thank you (if not obviously a sarcastic snark by the opponent) and if suited a 'well played'. When I have lethal but my opponent doesn't concede, I thank him, do 'well played' and kill him without playing more cards than I need to kill him. When people concede I only do 'well played' most of the time. When my opponent has lethal and I can't stop it, I do 'well played' and let him kill me.

If only all players had the decency to use emotes that way instead of using them as sarcastic snarks ("Wow, you just killed everything I had, 'well played'"; destroy everything with Flamestrike / sheeping your best minion and then doing the 'sorry' emote).

 

[BenjaminBirdie]

oh duh i just realized i can play on my mac until the iPad version is released in the US.

I won't miss out on any cool "Play iPad version before any other version" prizes, right?

 

[shadowstar]

I think it's fine at 7 mana. it's easy to play around and if they play it on turn 6, 7 or 8 they're likely not doing anything else. which is great tempo for you.

if anything it needs to be made a rare or epic so it doesn't show up in arena as frequently(although I think there are better ways to balance arena).

I agree with this. Make it rare and let all current accounts keep the 2 they have (new accounts will have to craft/find).

 

[borghe]

Eh, it's the one big advantage of a digital card game. Wizards needs an entire staff for playtesting their shit because they can' ban/errata cards willy nilly. The Hearthstone guys don't have nearly as much experience/manpower to do what Wizards does, so I don't mind if they regularly nerf/buff.

the problem with live balancing/tuning in a competitive game is you end up with FOTM in a never ending cycle. players complain and complain and complain so company nerfs. inevitably some new combination/class/whatever becomes the fotm.. players complain again, etc.

in a typical CCG... the card series plays out as it does.. and any balance issues found are then simply addressed the next set.. not through card changes but through NEW cards to supplement weak areas of a particular deck. This IMHO is a much better approach in a game like this. It creates better stability during the launch life of a particular set and doesn't empower players that with enough squeaky wheels they'll finally get some nerfs.

There are definitely inherent advantages to this being a digital game. Constant tuning IMHO is not one of those advantages. On the contrary it is a significant disadvantage as I see it.

The better option is to have a test center for the game where they can release expansions as betas. It's a f2p game, so they anyone can beta test. This way all of the cries for nerf and tuning can come during the beta, at which point the beta is shut down, the set released, and everyone can start earning/buying those cards in earnest.

oh duh i just realized i can play on my mac until the iPad version is released in the US.

I won't miss out on any cool "Play iPad version before any other version" prizes, right?

No. The only bonus is the free iPack which you get no matter what just for playing a match on the iPad.

 

[Haly]

in a typical CCG... the card series plays out as it does.. and any balance issues found are then simply addressed the next set.. not through card changes but through NEW cards to supplement weak areas of a particular deck.

As I've said, this isn't a voluntary choice for paper card games. There is literally no alternative for them that doesn't involve ruining the game.

And Wizards, as far as I know, doesn't print cards in response to meta shifts in recent (less than a year) competitive play. They usually use the banlist for that. Their sets are made a year ahead of time so they wouldn't be able to "react" to anything unless it was an extremely serious problem (Eggs, Jund, Storm), at which point they'd just trot out the ban list. This is what the Future League is for; a group of internal testers who playtest the game a year ahead of time to determine what the game may or may not need.

Public beta testing new expansions is an interesting idea though.

 

[borghe]

fair enough. I actually didn't give that thought.

 

[GeeDuhb]

It would be silly to buy an ipad just to play hearthstone right? I have a tablet already and a very good smartphone (galaxy s4).

But if I were to buy an ipad, which would be the best value? Runs it smooth 30fps and cheapest.

Not at all! Honestly, I think you might even fall in love with the iPad after using it for a while and ditch your other tablet... =x

Granted I don't have a tablet of any kind, but I just bought an Ipad Mini w/retina screen almost specifically to play this...It arrives tomorrow.

According the comparison screens, it's exactly the same (performance wise) as the Ipad Air, except it's smaller...Another user said HS ran well on it...Plus there's a few other cool games for IOS I want to try-PvZ 2 and FTL...So, I'd say get an Ipad Mini w/retina. I went with the 16gb and a cover...came out to be 400 bucks...I don't see myself a big IOS gamer, so this seemed like a decent fit for me..

Essentially, the Mini with Retina and the Air have the exact same processors, so they should be pretty identical as far as performance goes. I have even heard that the Mini has performed better in some benchmark tests, probably because it doesn't have as big of a screen to push to.

Most irritating bug at the moment is how the arrows which show what card your oponent is targeting are often not what the actually targetted. Keeps giving me false hope.

I completely agree. I have noticed it seems to be worse since the game officially launched...not that it's a surprise, considering the game was more broken than ever before once they rolled out the official release.

 

[borghe]

Essentially, the Mini with Retina and the Air have the exact same processors, so they should be pretty identical as far as performance goes. I have even heard that the Mini has performed better in some benchmark tests, probably because it doesn't have as big of a screen to push to.

not exactly. mini retina and ipad air have the same screen resolutions. physical size has nothing to do with it. Also the mini retina has a slightly slower CPU at 1.3Ghz (same as iphone 5s) vs. the ipad Air's 1.4Ghz CPU. Slower CPU is likely a result of a smaller battery and less heat due to the smaller case. in CPU/GPU intensive apps there is a small difference between the retina mini and the air... but not huge.

 

[scy]

As I've said, this isn't a voluntary choice for paper card games. There is literally no alternative for them that doesn't involve ruining the game.

And Wizards, as far as I know, doesn't print cards in response to meta shifts in recent (less than a year) competitive play. They usually use the banlist for that. Their sets are made a year ahead of time so they wouldn't be able to "react" to anything unless it was an extremely serious problem (Eggs, Jund, Storm), at which point they'd just trot out the ban list. This is what the Future League is for; a group of internal testers who playtest the game a year ahead of time to determine what the game may or may not need.

Public beta testing new expansions is an interesting idea though.

Yeah, they do their internal tests on perceived parts of the meta (and are usually pretty good at it ... for the most part ... sort of) but it's all like an entire block in advance.

 

[partyphone]

Clearing all my < 5 health minions by playing one card isn't great tempo for me.

you get to play minions onto an empty board.

 

[Llyrwenne]

you get to play minions onto an empty board.

Or just maybe the opponent still has minions on his side and thus the board isn't empty, and you have to play new minions (which take a turn to get ready) that the opponent can kill next turn with his spells/minions since it is late game and he will have 7 mana to use at the least.

 

[borghe]

Clearing all my < 5 health minions by playing one card isn't great tempo for me.

It's 7 mana meaning after they can drop an early game minion/ability at best. Not only that, but it's one class in the game and pretty much an auto-include in every mega deck.

for my rush pally, I make sure to have plenty of divine shields, rezzes, and/or big guns to survive the INEVITABLE flamestrike.

of course the other end of it is... as you start approaching turn 6 (with sorcerer's apprentice out) keep track of what you are putting out. For instance on turn 7 with the mage going second, no way would I drop 2-4 minions unable to react until next turn unless they had card text making them either valuable this turn or able to survive said flamestrike.

biggest counter to flamestrike? Never give the mage that "money" moment to use it.

Or just maybe the opponent still has minions on his side and thus the board isn't empty, and you have to play new minions (which take a turn to get ready) that the opponent can kill next turn with his spells/minions since it is late game and he will have 7 mana to use at the least.

honestly.. it sounds like your deck has mage-issues. I mean yeah... if you are getting to turn 7 or later and you are strictly left with minions who have to wait til next turn to play AND can't survive a flamestrike.. that's a serious issue against basic mage, let alone a more expensive mage deck.

 

[Vio-Lence]

Complaining about filling the board with low health minions against a mage after turn 7 is like people filling the board against hunters and complaining about UTH.

The most important parts to the game are learning each classes deck abilities and planning against that.

 

[partyphone]

Or just maybe the opponent still has minions on his side and thus the board isn't empty, and you have to play new minions (which take a turn to get ready) that the opponent can kill next turn with his spells/minions since it is late game and he will have 7 mana to use at the least.

then you were already losing and the mage was just sealing their victory.

you need to trade as efficiently as possible without flooding your board. I don't know what kind of decks you play but there is definitely a way to build them to give you good options. mage is one of the weakest constructed classes for a reason.

 

[scy]

Ultimately, a lot of times you'll have moments in Constructed where the best play is adding nothing to the board. You don't always have to play something and, many times, playing more to the board just makes the situation worse in a few turns when it all gets blown out in one card.

 

[Llyrwenne]

It's 7 mana meaning after they can drop an early game minion/ability at best. Not only that, but it's one class in the game and pretty much an auto-include in every mega deck.

for my rush pally, I make sure to have plenty of divine shields, rezzes, and/or big guns to survive the INEVITABLE flamestrike.

of course the other end of it is... as you start approaching turn 6 (with sorcerer's apprentice out) keep track of what you are putting out. For instance on turn 7 with the mage going second, no way would I drop 2-4 minions unable to react until next turn unless they had card text making them either valuable this turn or able to survive said flamestrike.

biggest counter to flamestrike? Never give the mage that "money" moment to use it.



honestly.. it sounds like your deck has mage-issues. I mean yeah... if you are getting to turn 7 or later and you are strictly left with minions who have to wait til next turn to play AND can't survive a flamestrike.. that's a serious issue against basic mage, let alone a more expensive mage deck.

I'll put it this way; when you are forced to massively change up your play-style or put specific cards in your deck for just the possibility that your opponent might draw one single card - that does not have any real drawback beyond costing 'high' mana - and him playing that one single card by itself very likely resulting in the destruction of all your minions on your side of the board while not having any drawbacks for your opponent, then that card does not require skill or careful consideration to play and is not fun to play against nor does it feel fair. Flamestrike (aside from select legendaries) is the only card in Hearthstone that fits that description and really could use a nerf of any kind.

Sure, my main deck does have a weakness to Flamestrike, but that's not the point. It also has problems with Consecration and Hellfire and sometimes even Arcane Explosion, but I'm perfectly fine with those cards being in the game the way they are.

I run low-health minions in my deck, but that is a risk I am taking and I've got nobody to blame but myself when they are hit by Consecration, Swipe or Arcane Explosion. Hellfire also damages the player's own hero and minions, so I'm fine with that. However, I don't consider 4 health 'low' anymore, and Flamestrike can wipe out a full board of 4 health minions when played just on its own, without any augmentations, prior card plays and, again, with negligible drawback (Not being able to play other cards in the same turn isn't really a drawback when you still have minions on the board and just destroyed all enemy minions.).

 

[Haly]

An aggro deck should not be allowed to play the exact same way against all of its competition. That's just how card games work, it's all just a very complicated game of rock-paper-scissors.

 

[scy]

(Not being able to play other cards in the same turn isn't really a drawback when you still have minions on the board and just destroyed all enemy minions.).

Why is this the case? Like, why did their minions survive the prior turn?

Flamestrike does a good job of clearing the board of trash minions. That's the only thing it does, however. It's a bad card if the board can persist (Divine Shield, Deathrattles) or just survive it outright (Yetis). For the longest time, Flamestrike was a dead card in Constructed play. It literally did nothing at mid-to-high levels of play.

 

[Haly]

If a Mage can play a Flamestrike while a powerful board position, then you never really had control of the game in the first place and Flamestrike only clinched their advantage. The game is, more than anything, about board control, not life totals. Even aggro decks have to account for board position because every creature they ignore in favor of going for the face is another creature they'll have to deal with if their board gets wiped. It's a careful balancing act.

 

[Conezays]

Just started playing this today...feeling hopelessly addicted already! Some of the early matches seem a little unfair...ie the other player has 2 special hero cards to use, both of his more powerful than mine, and I get 1. (Unless I'm missing out on something here). Regardless, having a blast. Feel free to add me "conezays."

 

[PsionBolt]

I'd say the hacked-est card in this game is Starving Buzzard. Kerjillions of cards. No one would complain about Unleash the Hounds if that dumb buzzard wasn't so ridiculous.

 

[Gormless Noodle]

Is it normal to pull a lot of elites out by using mind games? Seriously, luck is one thing, but I've actually been pretty consistently doing it with this "bullshit" deck I made.

 

[Llyrwenne]

An aggro deck should not be allowed to play the exact same way against all of its competition. That's just how card games work, it's all just a very complicated game of rock-paper-scissors.

Nor am I saying it should, nor am I calling for a nerf that reduces the positive effects of Flamestrike, nor do I claim that my deck or any other deck should work against everything.

Why is this the case? Like, why did their minions survive the prior turn?

Come on now, there are a lot of situations in which destroying all minions your opponent plays within one turn is not possible or viable.

Flamestrike does a good job of clearing the board of trash minions. That's the only thing it does, however. It's a bad card if the board can persist (Divine Shield, Deathrattles) or just survive it outright (Yetis). For the longest time, Flamestrike was a dead card in Constructed play. It literally did nothing at mid-to-high levels of play.

If you consider all 4 health and below minions and all minions that have been damaged to 4 health or below 'trash', then I just have nothing to say to you except how wrong you are.

Divine Shields are only really viable when playing Paladin, and in most cases Divine Shields have already been removed from your minions in prior turns to playing Flamestrike. Deathrattles are useful (I have Harvest Golem and Leper Gnome in my deck), but will not turn around the game in your favor when you've just lost all your minions and only gained a Damaged Golem for it. And again, to have enough Divine Shields / Deathrattles to 'counter' Flamestrike, you'd have to place several specific cards in your deck for one single specific card of one single specific class that they may or may not play.

And to all of you; stop claiming that the 'opponent would have won anyway'; not being able to kill two enemy minions the instant they are played or not dealing with them in that turn because you choose to deal direct damage (taking the risk that they buff their minions next turn) is not the same as the opponent 'having board control', especially when I have two 4/4 taunters on my side of the field and a 2/3 effect minion. Even if they had no minions at all and you have full board control, Flamestrike will destroy that board control instantly with little to no drawback for the opponent. One single card should not do that when played on it's own.

And again; not asking for a removal of the card or a reduction of it's positive effects; just for a slight increase in cost or a small bit of text that details a small negative effect. If I played my current deck against it, it would still destroy me, just like the card is doing now, but again, that's not the point and that's not why I think the card should be nerfed in some way.

 

[chickdigger802]

after doing some research and looking at card lists (haven't looked that much into specific used decks purposely)... think i might gravitate to doing control style decks around paladins or clerics.

I know balances can change on the tip of the hat, but are those heroes viable in today's game?

 

[Haly]

Nor am I saying it should, nor am I calling for a nerf that reduces the positive effects of Flamestrike, nor do I claim that my deck or any other deck should work against everything.

You might not be saying this explicitly but you're heavily implying it, because your argument for a Flamestrike nerf amounts to "if you play a lot of sub 4 toughness creatures against a Mage, then it's a huge tempo swing when they play Flamestrike". Well, yeah, duh, that's the entire point. But what if you play one or two quality fatties with high toughness/deathrattle effects? Is it so good then? No, probably not. Obviously, an aggro deck can't run high toughness fatties, but this is the price you pay for a deck that's remarkably consistent in the early turns.

Flamestrike is really great against people overextending, but it's not so good against big single guys. Any Mage deck that runs Flamestrike in their deck is accepting the fact that sometimes it'll be a blowout and sometimes it'll be totally inefficient. You're only focusing on when Flamestrike excels at doing its job, and forgetting to take into account all the other situations where 7 mana for 4-8 Minion only damage isn't really all that great. I mean, it's like 2 Shadowbolts that can't target a single guy and Shadowbolt is a poor card.

 

[Minsc]

When you're playing against a Mage, there's really just two kinds of creatures you can play, the ones that die to Flamestrike and the ones that die to Polymorph. Keep 1 or 2 of both kinds on the board as often as you can, and you should do alright. Never let a Polymorph lose you board control, and never let a flamestrike clear your board completely.

 

[Mr Cola]

So some interesting if pointless stats

Last 25 ysera draws for me 1 ysera awakens
Last 20 draws for opposition 15

I wish I was making this up

 

[scy]

Come on now, there are a lot of situations in which destroying all minions your opponent plays within one turn is not possible or viable.

Which means you're not in a favored board state going into that turn, that's all.

If you consider all 4 health and below minions and all minions that have been damaged to 4 health or below 'trash', then I just have nothing to say to you except how wrong you are.

Is this going to be one of those kind of arguments? :|

Anyway, by turn 7, most minions will generally have 5+ Health. Flamestrike is ideal at removing a lot of the earlier plays up to this point but fails to kill most of the larger mid-game drops / every single late game drop. The niche it serves is to try and wipe the board slate and to allow for them to make a comeback. The issue is that many of the decks in the meta just don't actually lose to a Flamestrike hitting the board.

The negative effect of Flamestrike is that it is 7 Mana which is a huge number. Sure, Zoo and other zergy aggro decks lose out to that spell but that's also 7 turns in. That's why those decks have ways to put damage to their face via reach or Charge. Flamestrike is incredibly bad in a meta that has so many ways to suddenly close out games from the hand.

 

[The Lamonster]

Just started playing this today...feeling hopelessly addicted already! Some of the early matches seem a little unfair...ie the other player has 2 special hero cards to use, both of his more powerful than mine, and I get 1. (Unless I'm missing out on something here). Regardless, having a blast. Feel free to add me "conezays."

Welcome to our inn!

Keep in mind, some of the most powerful cards aren't special in any way. It's all about using a card at the most appropriate time.

and I think you have to give us the full BattleTag to add you as a friend, i.e. the four numbers following your name.

 

[Haly]

Look at it from a matchup point of view:

Mage vs Control: Flamestrike is more or less useless and the only thing they have to handle big creatures is Polymorph
Mage vs Combo: Combo doesn't really care if you wipe their board, because they usually have some kind of draw engine to fill it back up
Mage vs Aggro: Draw Flamestrike, win. Don't draw Flamestrike, lose. Unless you're playing against Zoolock, in which case they can just play more creatures.

You're arguing for the nerf of Flamestrike because it is a sweep in that one specific matchup.