On Friday, February 19, the opening ceremony of BlizzCon 2021 took place. There, Blizzard presented many new announcements regarding their various franchises. We asked you how you found the opening, and most of you were not satisfied with it. What is the reason?
What was presented? At BlizzCon 2021, there were new details mainly about World of Warcraft and Diablo, both of which received some new content. The biggest announcements were:
- The Arcade Collection is here and includes three classics from Blizzard’s history: The Lost Vikings, Blackthorne, and Rock N Roll Racing
- Patch 9.1 “Chains of Domination” for Shadowlands was announced
- The new cinematic “King’s Gram” was shown, in which Anduin becomes the Herald of the Jailer
- TBC Classic (The Burning Crusade) is coming
- Hearthstone is receiving a new expansion: “Forged in the Barrens“
- Diablo 4 receives a new class: the Huntress
- Diablo 2 is coming as a remaster for PC and consoles
In our live ticker for BlizzCon 2021, you can find all announcements and trailers summarized in chronological order.
This is how well the opening was received: Shortly after the end, we asked you how you liked the opening ceremony of BlizzCon 2021. At the time of this evaluation (February 20, 2021, 3:50 PM), 878 readers had voted. The result is as follows:
- 28% are “dissatisfied” (250 votes)
- 23% are “less satisfied” (204 votes)
- 18% have a “neutral” opinion (158 votes)
- 15% are “very satisfied” (134 votes)
- 15% are “rather satisfied” (132 votes)
Deviations in the percentage are due to rounding errors.
Only 30% of voting MeinMMO readers, thus less than a third, were satisfied with the opening ceremony. More than half of you did not find it good. And most of you have a clear opinion on why that is.
Remasters and Classics – Does Blizzard need new games?
This bothers you the most: In the comments on MeinMMO, on GameStar, and on Reddit, complaints can be found that the announcements lack excitement. They are just reheated topics, nothing new.
SOPMOD on MeinMMO says, “I’m not a fan of this effortless nostalgia theme that Blizzard seems to be pursuing […] Is there no longer any courage for something new? Do they only rely on the old virtues with as little effort and risk as possible?”
Raiden Van Cleef on GameStar summarizes the mood among viewers in his own words: “I feel that Blizzard has no new ideas for game series. They have enough money. What is missing is the courage to do something new.” (via GameStar)
What is being referred to are apparently remasters and re-releases, such as from Diablo 2, The Burning Crusade, Hearthstone, and the Arcade Collection. Also, the Blizzard subreddit is full of memes about the re-releases and the fact that some games like Overwatch and Heroes of the Storm have simply been completely neglected:
Why is this a problem? Blizzard is known to many fans, especially from older generations, as a game developer that dares a lot. Projects were simply made, even at the risk of having to scrap them.
This mentality seems to be missing from the community with Blizzard in 2021. Instead of coming up with a new, concrete game or standing up for debacles like that of Warcraft 3 Reforged, only vague hints about other unspecified projects and remasters are coming. President J. Allen Brack said at the end of the ceremony: “There is so much we are working on. You already know about some things. We would like to talk about others when the right time comes.”
MeinMMO reader Tronic48 tries to put it all into perspective. He writes:
Are some of you dissatisfied? What did you expect, completely new games or something? Ask yourselves, especially those who wished for WoW Classic: Why should Blizzard make a new WoW, for example WoW 2, when the majority want a Classic server of WoW?
Leaks spoil the enjoyment of BlizzCon
What was leaked? Even before the convention, many of the major announcements of BlizzCon 2021 were already known through leaks. Patch 9.1 and TBC Classic were even accidentally revealed by Blizzard 30 hours too early.
The big announcement of Diablo 2 Resurrected was known weeks before, when game journalist Jason Schreier revealed the Diablo 2 remake.
The new class in Diablo 4 was perhaps the biggest surprise. It was not leaked extensively beforehand, but Blizzard hinted that a new class would be announced during BlizzCon.
That’s why it’s bad: Blizzard relies heavily on the effect of shocking the community with completely unexpected twists. The studio’s games engage players with emotions that can be unleashed at BlizzCon.
World of Warcraft is possibly the best example. If it hadn’t been previously known that Anduin becomes “evil”, the shock during the cinematic would have been much greater, and the discussions would have started after the BlizzCon, not before.
Cortyn analyzes these effects a little closer: I feel sorry for the Blizzard developers whose content was leaked
A 21-year-old game is the most well-received
What kind of game is that? The biggest announcement of BlizzCon 2021 was the remaster of Diablo 2 titled “Resurrected”. The remake of the ARPG classic includes:
- Classes from the original game
- both the base game and the expansion Lords of Destruction
- reworked graphics in 4K with the ability to switch to “old graphics”
- some “quality of life” improvements such as a shared stash
- console versions for PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S with cross-progression
Although Diablo 2 is already nearly 21 years old, and even though it is a remaster, the announcement has been welcomed by most players and has also received the most praise here on MeinMMO based on comments.
That’s why Diablo 2 Remaster is received so well: Diablo 2 is considered a milestone of the genre and the game that has shaped ARPGs to this day. For many fans, it is still better than the sequel Diablo 3. MeinMMO reader Kartunga says:
I have played Diablo 2 at release in 2000 and later LoD more than any other game in my life […] This game has shaped me like Gothic. Just 2 years ago, I played it again for a few months.
Even players who do not celebrate Diablo 2 for nostalgia want to check it out. Due to its good reputation, the announcement has even attracted players who had no prior contact with Diablo 2. User DeepHorse on Reddit simply writes: “I’ve never played it before, I definitely have to test it.”
In itself, this is a strange result, as most of you are annoyed by the remasters yet simultaneously celebrate the remaster of Diablo 2 the most. However, problems like those with Warcraft 3 Reforged might have also led to a certain caution in the community.
What do you think of the survey results? Did you expect this, or are you surprised that so few were satisfied with the opening?
