During a panel at the Penny Arcade Expo, Blizzard Entertainment unveiled a free-to-play collectible card game based on the massively successful Warcraft franchise. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft allows players to select one of nine different characters as they take turns summoning characters, casting spells and using weapons in the one versus one online game.

In the FAQ for the game, Blizzard said they love collectible card games and have been playing them since their Silicon & Synapse days. Creating a digital card game like Hearthstone just felt like the natural next step so they constructed a small team of 15 developers to hammer out the title. They were given more creative freedom to experiment, as we understand it.

If you've always wanted to try a strategy card game but never understood exactly how they were played then Hearthstone may just be the game for you. Blizzard said the game was designed so anyone could get into it no matter how familiar they are with the Warcraft universe or these types of games.

The game will be available for PC and Mac users with a version for Apple's iPad expected at some point down the road. Those interested in giving the game a try can apply for beta access through your Battle.net account as one normally would for other titles.

PAX East is in full swing through Sunday in Boston, Massachusetts. We'll likely see some other noteworthy game announcements over the weekend which we will keep a close eye on.