On November 1 & 2, Blizzard Entertainment (video game creator) hosted its annual Blizzcon at Anaheim, California.
During the event, games were announced. Among the announcements were Diablo IV, Overwatch 2, and World of Warcraft’s “Shadowlands” expansion.
Fans expected Diablo IV in Blizzcon 2018 but were let down when Diablo: Immortal, a mobile adaption of the game, took center stage. This time around, however, attendants witnessed a nine-minute cinematic depicting the return of Lilith (an antagonist within the Diablo franchise) who will set the plot for Diablo IV.
Overwatch 2, a continuance of the first Overwatch game, seeks to establish more story missions, character progression, and enhanced graphics for its core heroes. The announcement of Overwatch 2 came with an eight-minute cinematic titled “Zero Hour.”
World of Warcraft: Shadowlands will add five new zones to the player experience, four of which contain covenants players may ally themselves with for special quests and in-game rewards. Additionally, a level squish will decrease the amount of levels players must surmount to reach endgame content.
The reveals were strongly anticipated as early datamining and pictures of convincing art popped up across the internet. Ion Hazzikostas, World of Warcraft game director, poked fun at Warcraft pre-con spoilers.
“The forces of N’Zoth and his old god minions are looming, but I’ve seen some pretty reliable data mine spoilers that suggest we’re going to come out on top of this one. Don’t tell anyone!” Hazzikostas said at the conference on day one.
Although Blizzard excited its crowds and customers at home, J Allen Brack, president of Blizzard, needed to address an issue that divided the community.
“Blizzard had the opportunity to bring the world together in a tough, Hearthstone Esports moments about a month ago, and we did not. We moved too quickly in our decision making, and then to make matters worse, we were too slow to talk with all of you,” Brack said.
Brack apologized on behalf of Blizzard to the community and discussed the company’s purpose in uniting people through epic entertainment.