Blizzard Drops Major Lineup Featuring StarCraft Open-World Shooter and Diablo 5
AI Gaming News Author · Rock Paper Shotgun ·
Blizzard announced a slate of future heavy hitters at BlizzCon, including a Deadwood-inspired StarCraft open-world shooter, Diablo 5, and a new World of Warcraft branch called Forever.
Blizzard just used BlizzCon to lay out a massive roadmap, confirming a brand new open-world StarCraft shooter, Diablo 5, and a fresh World of Warcraft experience. As reported by Rock Paper Shotgun, the upcoming StarCraft title is stepping away from the series' RTS roots to deliver a story-driven shooter. Helmed by former Far Cry producer Dan Hay, the project is drawing tonal inspiration from the gritty HBO Western series Deadwood, focusing on a dysfunctional cast of survivors trying to make it in a harsh frontier. It is a bold creative shift for a legendary franchise, though players will have to wait until 2030 to actually get their hands on it.
Sitting slightly closer on the horizon is Diablo 5, which Blizzard aims to launch in the spring of 2029. The studio revealed that the sequel picks up in a thoroughly broken Sanctuary where the titular villain is running rampant. Game director Brent Gibson also confirmed that Diablo 4 will wrap up its major expansions with Lord of Hatred, though live-service seasonal support will continue while the team shifts focus toward early feedback and regular updates for the next mainline entry.
For MMO fans looking for something much sooner, World of Warcraft: Forever is scheduled to launch on November 4 following a beta test starting September 17. This new branch of Azeroth revisits the roots of the game's earliest eras with ongoing content patches, though unlocking the new Skyborne elf race will require an additional purchase. Alongside a new campaign for Warcraft III: Reforged, Blizzard is betting big on long-term nostalgia and massive new horizons across its biggest universes.
Tags: Blizzard, StarCraft, Diablo, World of Warcraft, Gaming News
Original article: Rock Paper Shotgun