BlizzCon 2021: What is it and what to expect (Diablo IV, Overwatch 2, and more)
Gaming fans are fanatical, but Blizzard game fans are truly hardcore. The fanbase for the many popular gaming franchises of Blizzard Entertainment is not only huge, but these folks take their gaming seriously. That’s why Blizzard holds its occasional BlizzCon fan events to celebrate both their games and the fan communities that have formed around them. However, due to the coronavirus outbreak, Blizzard is holding its (mostly) annual BlizzCon 2021 event completely online.
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It’s calling this year’s event BlizzConline, and it promises to have not only a ton of news and announcements from the developer but also some great opportunities for fans to get together to discuss lore, show off some cosplay, and much more.
Heres what we can expect from BlizzCon 2021:
What is BlizzCon?
BlizzCon was first held in 2005, and was organized by Blizzard Entertainment to offer fans a chance to get together to celebrate the developers’ many games. With the exception of 2006, 2012 and 2020, the two-day event has been held annually at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California. The location also happens to be very close to Blizzard’s world headquarters in Irvine, California.
The attendance for BlizzCon is carefully controlled by the developer. The first BlizzCon had just 4,000 attendees, but the most recent event had 40,000 people attend from all over the world. Tickets for BlizzCon normally sell out almost immediately after they go on sale, even though ticket prices have gone up to nearly $230 for the event.
Blizzard usually makes major game announcements during BlizzCon, and fans in the past have gotten their hands on early builds of upcoming games. They can also attend developer and fan panels, enter art and cosplay contests, and more. Usually, BlizzCon ends with a huge concert, with major artists like Ozzy Osbourne, Foo Fighters, Tenacious D, Metallica, and others playing during past events.
When and where will BlizzCon 2021 be held?
Blizzard confirmed they would not be holding a BlizzCon event during 2020 due to the coronavirus outbreak. However, the developer did announce that it would hold BlizzCon 2021 as an online-only event. “BlizzConline” will be held on February 19-21, 2021, with video panels shown on the BlizzCon website. It will begin at 5 p.m. Eastern time (2 p.m. Pacific time) on February 19. Day 2’s events will begin at 3 p.m. Eastern time (Noon Pacific time) on February 20.
How much will BlizzCon 2021 cost?
The good news is that BlizzCon 2021, or BlizzConline, will be completely free to view on the event’s official website. That means no worries about not being able to get a ticket this year. The site will have up to six video channels where you can watch pre-recorded and live footage of panels and events. BlizzCon 2021 will also be available to stream on Twitch and YouTube. After the event, the video panels will continue to be available to view on demand.
What announcements can we expect from BlizzCon 2021?
Blizzard usually keeps what it plans to reveal at BlizzCon as a highly protected secret. However, we do expect to hear some news about some upcoming previously announced games.
Diablo IV
Blizzard first announced, and also showed off some early gameplay, from its fantasy action-RPG Diablo IV during the last BlizzCon in November 2019. While the developer has been giving quarterly development updates on the game since then, we expect a flood of new info, and gameplay video, to be shown at BlizzCon 2021. However, the game is not expected to be released this year.
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Overwatch 2
Also announced at BlizzCon 2019, Overwatch 2 is the upcoming sequel to the highly popular hero-based online team shooter. There hasn’t been a ton of news about that game’s development since then, but we expect a new cinematic trailer to be shown during BlizzCon 2021. We will also likely see more actual gameplay, new feature and hero reveals, and possibly a release date for the PC and consoles. Again, don’t expect the game to be released in 2021.
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Diablo Immortal
The controversial mobile-online Diablo spin-0ff was announced during BlizzCon 2018. In December 2020, a small Technical Alpha was launched for Australia, but that has since ended. We could get an actual expanded beta release date for this game, plus more information, during BlizzCon 2021.
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World of Warcraft
Blizzard’s long-running fantasy MMO has seen a resurgence of players in 2020, in part due to the coronavirus lockdowns. We should hear about yet another major expansion for the game during BlizzCon 2021.
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Hearthstone
The mobile-PC collectible card game-RPG, set in the Warcraft universe, continues to be popular. We should get news of yet another major expansion for the game during the fan event.
Diablo II Remastered (rumored)
Blizzard has remastered other older games, such as StarCraft and Warcraft III. There have been tons of rumors that Diablo II will be the next game to get the remastered treatment. Activision Blizzard recently announced that an Activision developer, Vicarious Visions, is now under the Blizzard umbrella. That has lent more credence to rumors that the developer is working on some kind of Diablo II remastered edition. It would be great to hear about it officially at BlizzCon 2021.
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StarCraft game (?)
It’s been over four years since Blizzard has released any all-new StarCraft content, and over three years since the launch of StarCraft Remastered. This is pure speculation, but we think that it’s time for Blizzard to reveal the next phase of their hit sci-fi game franchise as part of BlizzCon 2021.
Surprises
You never know what Blizzard might have up their sleeve. They could announce yet another all-new franchise, more mobile games, or something else entirely, as part of the fan event.
In-game bonuses
While BlizzCon 2021 is free, Blizzard is selling what it calls “Celebration Collection” bundles as part of both the event and Blizzard’s 30th Anniversary celebration. These bundles include in-game items and rewards for a variety of Blizzard games. You can learn more about these virtual bundles, and purchase them now, at Blizzard’s website.
That’s all we know about BlizzCon 2021. Stay tuned as we will update this page with news from the actual online fan event on February 19-20.
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