The BlizzCon 2023 has come to an end. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus was there live and spoke with the developers, but also looked at the convention itself. As a fan and expert on Diablo, his highlights were certainly the new announcements for the franchise, but every area left a great impression. A recap.
I attended BlizzCon 2023 not only as an editor but also as a fan of Blizzard. I have been playing Blizzard games for over 20 years, starting back with The Lost Vikings. Accordingly, I tried to gather not only information for you (and myself) but also my impressions.
It was exciting to experience BlizzCon in person for the first time, to have the people responsible for the favorite games sitting right in front of me. This led to many interesting conversations, such as about the new class of Diablo 4.
However, the biggest highlight for most fans was World of Warcraft. Here, the icon Chris Metzen appeared on stage and three expansions were announced at once with a ton of features that received thunderous applause.
After my first (and somewhat disappointing) impression of the opening ceremony, I took more time for the convention, and – oh boy! The halls all looked fantastic.
You can find a full walkthrough of the hall in the VOD of our two-hour tour. My highlights from the Diablo hall are in the gallery:
From the Church in Nevesk to the Darkmoon Fair
In 4 halls, Blizzard’s games were showcased with various attractions such as play stations, live events of the Overwatch Worlds, autograph sessions, and photo opportunities. The Warcraft hall was the most crowded.
Here, in addition to dozens of PCs with Patch 10.2 and the Season of Discovery, there was a section for the new Warcraft Rumble, the Hearthstone tavern, and the truly impressive Darkmoon Fair. The latter acts like a “real life in-game shop.”
I didn’t completely understand the system there, but apparently, tokens are bought for money, which can be exchanged for tickets that are then traded for rewards. The most popular items here were pins, i.e., badges, which people had whole binders full of for trading. It’s quite a crazy culture.
However, my personal highlight was the Diablo hall. There, a red-lit mist constantly wafted through the room, a huge Lilith dominated the upper part of the hall, and in the center stood the church where the mother first led her children to sin at the beginning of Diablo 4.
There were tons of opportunities to take cool photos like an altar of sacrifice, this church, or the wings of Inarius, but also tables to have tarot cards read and a tattoo studio that I unfortunately could not participate in.
Although the announcements for Diablo itself were rather meager, the hall completely captivated me. As a fan of the series and of dark themes in general, I felt really comfortable there. Just a visit left a lasting impression, and I look forward to seeing what Blizzard has to offer next year.
