The BlizzCon was full of announcements. It felt like the old Blizzard. But the only thing that has aged is the audience.
The BlizzCon 2026 is over. I’ll be honest with you: The BlizzCon was amazing. Everything presented there was really great. There were so many strong announcements and so many community wishes fulfilled that the negative voices this year are very, very quiet (or very bitter).
Some say: “This is Blizzard as I remember it. Now they make games like they used to. This is the old Blizzard.”
However, the more I think about it, the more I come to the conclusion:
No. This is not the old Blizzard. This is Blizzard creating games for old people.
3 old games for old people who can’t find anything new
One of the biggest surprises was the announcement of a new hero in Heroes of the Storm and thus the effective revival of the game. Something that made me briefly pinch myself to see if I was dreaming. Who is this made for? Exactly, for the old HotS fans who cannot let go of a game that has been put into maintenance mode for over 4 years.
The campaign “Forsaken Kingdom” strikes the same chord. It is the first new official campaign for Warcraft III in 23 years. It is not only a compensation for the absolutely botched Reforged at release but also proof: Blizzard can still do it. The campaign is fun, plays fantastically. But I will write a separate article about that. The essence is also here: Who is this made for? For the people who know and love Warcraft III, for those who likely played the game over 20 years ago.
Then there was World of Warcraft Forever also known as “Classic+”. A version of Vanilla that is supposed to be continuously developed without going beyond level 60. A permanent home for all those who love the gameplay of 20 years ago, who enjoy the leveling experience of Classic and still want to experience new adventures. But which group is that? Older gaming generations. The veterans who played Vanilla.
The StarCraft trailer also appealed to me greatly. I like the dark StarCraft world, I’ve played the first two games multiple times. The world as a shooter – and even with a clear single-player focus – I can imagine very well. But here it must also be said: There was no gameplay shown, just the trailer. This is also still about 4 years away. It cannot yet be said for whom this is really intended.
However, looking at the 3 biggest announcements for me – that is the Warcraft III campaign, WoW Forever, and the HotS revival – the target audience is clear: veterans. Players who have been around for ages and do not keep up with the latest gaming trends.
It seems to me that Blizzard has said: “You know what? Okay, we are not attracting new players anymore. Therefore, we are addressing the players we already have and giving them more of the old stuff they love. And if they are satisfied, we will look further.”
And yes, I love that.
The old generation receives a lot of love from Blizzard
Whether it’s Xal’atath in Heroes of the Storm, the new campaign from Warcraft III, or WoW Forever. All of this seems to have not been primarily made for the new, younger generation, but especially for the veterans. Those who have been playing Blizzard games for 10, 20, or even 30 years. It’s more of what they love.
I don’t mean to say that all the games do not offer a chance for new generations to enter. But for the first time in a long time, it feels as if Blizzard has made a course correction: The existing community is the primary target. The fans who have been there for decades. And they had a BlizzCon that probably will not happen again anytime soon.
Perhaps, and I can only speculate, Blizzard hopes that the “old hands” will eventually bring their children, nieces, and nephews along. Because if there’s anything that ever made me want to play a game, it has rarely been trailers or promises from developers: it’s been enthusiastic friends or the curiosity that was awakened when I watched others play it.
I don’t know if Blizzard’s current new path is one that is particularly sustainable. But it definitely fulfills my wishes. And at least for now, we “old gamers” are probably also those who have the most money left for this hobby, making us a lucrative target audience. And I freely say: If the quality of the content of these “new old” games is right, I am happy to pay for it. Even if others are already complaining again that new content costs money.
Or how do you see it?
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