Blizzard is currently making significant staff reductions but plans to release many new titles for Warcraft and Diablo. Here are the details.
Although there is currently a lot of criticism for Blizzard due to numerous employees being laid off and even the popular community manager Ythisens having to leave, Blizzard has big plans. More games than ever before are set to be released in the coming years, and there will also be some new releases for Warcraft and Diablo.
What was said? Last night, Activision Blizzard held its earnings call. The company leaders had to answer to investors. They discussed the successes and failures of the past year and gave an outlook on 2019 and the following years.
What exactly was said? The developer teams for all major franchises will be significantly increased over the course of 2019. In total, they want to raise the number of developers by about 20% and have already begun to “aggressively recruit new talent.” This will likely continue throughout the year. As a result, 2019 will be a rather quiet year, as there are no major releases from Blizzard.
More Warcraft and Diablo in the future: Blizzard cited World of Warcraft as an example of a franchise that continues to receive a lot of content even after years and delivers regularly. But new Warcraft games are also in planning, as “Blizzard is also investing in other Warcraft games and working on further ways to satisfy the community of this ongoing and beloved franchise.”
Also for Diablo, the “number of developers” is steadily increasing. The teams are working on several new projects, but also on the global launch of Diablo Immortal.
Which games could come? The statements leave a lot of room for speculation. In addition to Diablo Immortal, work is reportedly also actively ongoing on a Diablo 4. A more action-oriented title, possibly from the first person perspective, has been discussed for Diablo from time to time but has never been confirmed.
For Warcraft, fans are also expecting a mobile offshoot that leans more towards strategy and delivers short, punchy rounds like in Hearthstone. While fans are also yearning for a Warcraft 4, it seems rather unlikely for now, as Blizzard would then be competing with its own Warcraft 3: Reforged.
In summary, it can be said that many Warcraft and Diablo games are planned for the coming years. Whether they will target Blizzard’s “core players” remains to be seen. However, anyone who is open to all gaming platforms has reason to be happy.
Do you look positively towards the future? Are you already excited for many new games from Blizzard? Or are the negative news just too overwhelming for any joy to arise?
