It’s been three years since the last BlizzCon, Blizzard Entertainment’s once-annual celebration of all its titles, so a stoked return is only to be expected. Fortunately for fans, BlizzCon 2026 had its fair share of surprises, big announcements, and revival projects for its older franchises.
Taking place on 12 and 13 December at Anaheim Convention Centre in California, the opening ceremony unveiled the next chapter of its future with various special guests in attendance, including J-pop duo Yoasobi, K-pop group Le Sserafim, performer T-Pain, electronic music producer deadmau5, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings star Simu Liu, as well as gaming personality Duke Dennis and actor-slash-content-creator Khleo Thomas. Deep-dive panels for each title followed, with presentations, esports programmes, livestreams, and more rounding out the two-day experience.
Here’s a recap of everything that went down on the show floor for BlizzCon 2026.
Diablo dives back into Hell (and Sanctuary) with fifth mainline game and Netflix animated series
Well, that’s a surprise. With Diablo IV having two expansions and Season 15 launching on 15 September, nobody would have guessed a sequel announcement so early, but here we are. The next mainline entry is in development for a Spring 2029 release, with the tagline teasing the fall of Sanctuary, 100 years after the events of the current title. In it, the Lord of Terror himself, the original Diablo, will return as a fully developed character alongside the demon hunter and monk classes (revealed in its dedicated panel), while the plague knight is a new heavily armoured addition that spreads disease around the battlefield.
Diablo V is also set to feature the biggest class roster of any game combined and a travelling caravan, similar to the Ardura Caravan from Path of Exile 2, which replaces traditional towns. Other notable elements include a mix of procedurally generated dungeons and open-world regions that change with every return, tiered items, and equippable gear sets.
As for the fourth instalment, it’s coming to Nintendo Switch 2 on 15 September as a bundle comprising the base game and the Vessel of Hatred and Lord of Hatred expansions. The Amazon class will step onto the battlefield with a bow and a javelin in the first half of 2027, and a Diablo animated series is in the works at Netflix, though no additional details, including a release window, were shared.
Hearthstone gets new expansion and class
More lore will be explored in Hearthstone, as its upcoming Reign of the Black Empire expansion is casting the spotlight on narrative. Set tens of thousands of years in the past, it’s themed around a time when Warcraft’s Old Gods were at the height of their power and introduces several gameplay tweaks, such as an overhauled Journal, a new Aberrations minion type, and the “Assemble” keyword.
Following its launch on 20 October, players can look forward to the Monk class sometime in 2027, marking the game’s first new class in what seems like forever. Speaking of firsts, 2v2 Hearthstone is making its debut as a limited-time event, too.
Heroes of the Storm makes unexpected comeback with Xal’atath
Never lose hope, indeed. In an unexpected turn of affairs, Heroes of the Storm is getting a new hero called Xal’atath later this month — the first in nearly six years — and another character may follow at some point, depending on player response. Hogger was the latest addition to the MOBA, which was initially released in 2015 but could never quite live up to the success of its competition, namely League of Legends and Dota 2. Perhaps it’s time to rise from the grave?
Overwatch welcomes new blood with vampire hero Doctrine
As Overwatch mascot Tracer would say, “The world could always use more heroes!” The game’s latest reveal, however, isn’t on the side of good, featuring a vampiric support who uses bat drones to heal teammates and boost their attack speed. The Infuse ability is particularly interesting, as it adds a powerful effect to Doctrine’s next ability, while his Ultimate, Deliverance, lives out the vampire fantasy by launching a swarm of drones that reduces enemy maximum health and grants allies overhealth.
The character officially joins the roster in Season 5, which launches this October. Joining him as a support is Sombra, who’s moving from Damage into the role, with Roadhog also set to receive major reworks and a new Escort map, Watchpoint: Grímsvötn, bringing the fight to a remote Icelandic prison.
StarCraft goes open-world shooter in 2030
A new era of StarCraft beckons! The real-time strategy (RTS) series is making its grand return in 2030, albeit in a new form: an open-world shooter. A cinematic trailer gives little away, showing a large-scale showdown between Terran Dominion soldiers and the Zerg, and no other details have been announced. Since the game is still four years away, the secrecy will likely stick around for a while, although it’d be interesting to see how longtime fans will react to the genre leap.
World of Warcraft honours the past
As the BlizzCon 2026 closer, there was plenty in store for World of Warcraft fans. First, World of Warcraft: Forever, billed as a new reimagining of the classic MMORPG, explores unseen corners of Azeroth during the Vanilla era with three new zones, featuring over 1,000 new quests, nine new dungeons, two new raids, the new Skyborne race, and more. Instead of one heroic route, players, who will level up to 60 and stay there indefinitely, can carve their own journey when it launches on 4 November, with the beta starting on 18 September.
Keeping to the spirit of the past, Warcraft 3 is getting its first new campaign in over 20 years, following The Frozen Throne. Titled Forsaken Kingdom, the two-part adventure depicts the last days of Lordaeron across 30 hours of gameplay and will serve as the narrative stage for World of Warcraft: Forever. It’s out now, arriving alongside a substantial free update that gives players the ability to select up to 24 units at once, and welcomes a new hero unit to the neutral roster: the Forsaken Paladin.
Finally, the next update for World of Warcraft: Midnight, Eclipse, is set to conclude the Worldsoul Saga. “The snow-packed peaks of Northrend cower below the spreading shadow of a singular and thundering judgment,” reads the official description for the upcoming expansion, with the accompanying cinematic trailer showing Xal’atath “a toe’s length away” from her ultimate objective.
The add-on is due in 2027 and will be followed by The Last Titan expansion, which is keeping story details under wraps to prevent spoilers for Eclipse.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Kevin Low
