After a full two-year hiatus, BlizzCon, the major showcase event led by Blizzard Entertainment, finally made a triumphant return last weekend, bringing a slew of exciting, major announcements for long-dormant classic IPs such as World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Hearthstone, and Diablo, and even Heroes of the Storm and StarCraft. Here is a roundup of the highlights from this year’s event.
Heroes of the Storm returns with an update after six years.
It has now been six years since Blizzard’s MOBA game Heroes of the Storm received its last character update, but during this presentation, the team confirmed that another new character, Xal’atath from World of Warcraft, will officially join the fight. If this update can revive the game’s popularity, Blizzard can be expected to release all-new content more frequently going forward.
A new StarCraft single-player shooter is in the works!
One of the biggest surprises of this presentation was that the Blizzard team finally revealed the long-rumored new StarCraft game. However, instead of continuing the series’ classic real-time strategy, it will be an open-world shooter focused on a single-player experience, with Far Cry series developer Dan Hay serving as game director.
As for why this new title, which won’t be released until 4 years from now, was revealed so early? Dan Hay said Blizzard is fully confident in the game’s development progress so far, and emphasized that they believe the team has already accumulated plenty of content to show, so they felt the time was right to go public.
Overwatch’s New Hero Revealed! Two Existing Heroes Are Getting Major Changes
In the blink of an eye, Overwatch’s 2026 chapter, “Talon’s Dominion,” is nearing its end, and the game director has officially revealed to players the next new hero set to arrive: “Blood Oath.” In the latest animated trailer, former Talon leader “Doomfist” can be seen leading “Reaper,” “Sombra,” and “Widowmaker” in invading an Overwatch prison, ultimately succeeding in rescuing the imprisoned “Blood Oath” and declaring the call to launch a counterattack against the usurper “Vendetta.”
As of now, this character has been officially made available for all players to play in Quick Play and other non-competitive modes. Meanwhile, the developers have also teased that Sombra and Roadhog are about to receive a complete overhaul, with the former even changing from a Damage hero to a Support.
New Diablo game and animation news galore
Regarding Diablo, Blizzard confirmed that it has now officially partnered with Netflix to adapt Diablo into an animated series. If it can replicate the style of the Castlevania animated series, it will undoubtedly win the favor of many players.
As for Diablo IV, Blizzard also announced that the game’s Nintendo Switch 2 version will launch on September 16 alongside the latest season, Embers of Hell, and NS2 players will also be able to purchase a bundle containing the two expansions Vessel of Hatred and Lord of Hatred. In addition, the Blizzard team confirmed that a brand-new class, the Amazon Warrior, will join Diablo IV sometime in 2027.
On the other hand, Blizzard also officially confirmed in a later interview that Lord of Hatred will be the final expansion for Diablo 4, and as for why…
Diablo 5 Announced, Returning to Hell Again in 2029!
As Lord of Hatred brings the story of Diablo 4 to a close, Blizzard has officially announced to players that the proper sequel, Diablo 5, will launch in spring 2029, and until then, the upcoming seasons of Diablo 4 will continue to pave the way for the sequel.
New Hearthstone expansion card packs and classes arrive one after another!
Hearthstone, the card battle game, also revealed during this presentation the new expansion Reign of the Dark Empire, launching on October 20, along with a new card keyword, Assemble, letting players freely fuse any two cards with this keyword effect from the 250 new cards coming soon. Even the Hearthstone development team said this mechanic is sure to lead to all kinds of crazy combos and strategies. As for the new class, Blizzard also confirmed that Monk will officially join the game, becoming the first new class in four years.
World of Warcraft: Midnight — “Void Etching”
Holly Longdale and Ion Hazzikostas from the World of Warcraft team introduced players to the MMORPG’s next chapter update, hinting that this time it will bring players “full-throttle” brand-new content. “Void Etching” will lead players into a showdown with “Xal’atath,” and a newly released trailer also showcases this formidable adversary.
World of Warcraft: The Last Titan
While “Void Etching” leads World of Warcraft’s story into its next chapter, the next major expansion, The Last Titan, will bring dramatic changes to the story this MMORPG has built over 20 years, and the team has promised to share more details sometime in 2027.
Warcraft III: Reforged New Campaign: The Forgotten Kingdom
At this presentation, the Blizzard team also surprise-announced that Warcraft III: Reforged’s latest campaign content, “The Forgotten Kingdom,” would be released immediately, once again sounding the call to war for Warcraft! Players will personally experience the fall of Lordaeron and witness fierce battles between the human and orc armies. In addition, other enhancements include visual updates, improvements to the map editor, and more units to command.
World of Warcraft: Eternal
At the end of the presentation, the Blizzard team officially unveiled World of Warcraft: Eternal, leading players back to the starting point of the Azeroth adventure. This long-rumored enhanced version of World of Warcraft: Classic will officially begin closed beta testing on September 17 and is expected to officially launch on November 5. This new version will include new dungeons, 10- to 20-player raids, a playable “Skyborne Elf” race, account-wide benefits, and new areas to explore.
Source: KOCPC Chinese