At the start of November every year, gamers from all over the world set their sights at BlizzCon, Blizzard’s annual convention. For BlizzCon 2018, Blizzard once again brought a slew of announcements for all its major franchises, some of which were well-received by the community; others, not so much.
Overall though, BlizzCon had lots of exciting announcements (even though there were a few duds)! In case you missed out on all the Blizzard news over the weekend, here are the biggest news and announcements from BlizzCon 2018:
Warcraft III: Reforged
Following the success of Starcraft: Remastered last year, fans clamored for a similar remaster of Blizzard’s other beloved RTS, Warcraft 3. If you were one of those who wished for an updated WC3, you’ll be very happy to know that Blizzard recently announced Warcraft 3: Reforged!
Much like the Starcraft remaster, Warcraft 3: Reforged includes updated graphics and new animations. The WC3 remaster also has over four hours of new cutscenes, as well as full Battle.net integration.
Overwatch – Ashe
Blizzard has unveiled a new hero every BlizzCon since 2016, and 2018 is no different. The latest Overwatch hero was revealed last weekend and she is Ashe, the leader of the Deadlock Gang. Ashe is a DPS hero which packs a lever-action rifle, a double-barreled shotgun, and some handy dynamite. She will also be accompanied by her robotic B.O.B. who can be summoned in-game with Ashe’s ultimate.
In typical Blizzard fashion, Ashe’s introduction was accompanied by a new animated short. BlizzCon attendees were treated to an awesome official cosplay of Ashe!
Diablo Immortal
Diablo fans from all over the world tuned in to this year’s BlizzCon in anticipation of an announcement of Diablo 4, or even a remaster of Diablo/Diablo II. What they got though was something different. At BlizzCon 2018, Blizzard unveiled Diablo Immortal, an MMORPG Diablo title for mobile.
While we’re still definitely impressed with how the game looked during the reveal (especially as it should be a great test for smartphone hardware), we’re not surprised by the backlash that Blizzard received from disappointed Diablo fans; a mobile game just can’t compare to the full Diablo experience on PC, especially one that’s being developed by a third party (Netease). Here’s hoping that the game delivers its promise of being a fully-fledged Diablo experience on mobile.
Hearthstone Rastakhan’s Rumble
BlizzCon 2018 also saw the announcement of Hearthstone’s latest expansion. Named Rastakhan’s Rumble, this troll-themed expansion brings 135 new cards to the game, as well as a new singleplayer mode.
Heroes of the Storm – Orphea
Overwatch wasn’t the only game given a new hero at BlizzCon 2018 as Blizzard also unveiled the latest hero coming to the Heroes of the Storm roster. Orphea is HotS’ newest hero, and she’s unlike any hero that came before her! Orphea is the first wholly original HotS hero; every other hero is from a previous Blizzard IP.
WoW – Rise of Azshara Update
With the recent release of the Battle for Azeroth expansion, we didn’t expect much news from WoW, but Blizzard actually revealed some exciting news for Warcraft fans. During BlizzCon last weekend, Blizzard highlighted Rise of Azshara, the second major content update to the BoA expansion. Aside from the new game content info, Blizzard also showed a touching new cinematic entitled Lost Honor.
Destiny 2 is free this month!
During BlizzCon 2018, Blizzard announced a major freebie for every Battle.net user. Players who log into Battle.net until November 18, 2018 will receive Destiny 2 for free! The best thing about it is that there’s no catch!
Sure, Destiny 2 may have had a rocky start, but with the latest expansion Forsaken, the game seems to have finally hit its stride. If you’re curious about trying out Destiny 2, you should definitely log-in to Battle.net right now!
And there you have it, the biggest news and announcements of BlizzCon 2018! That wasn’t all that happened at the even though, so here’s a handy list of some other Blizzard news that you may have missed:
[BlizzCon 2018] Zeratul Joins roster of Starcraft Commanders
[BlizzCon 2018] Warcraft III: Reforged Team Promises Exciting Plans for Remaster!
Blizzcon 2018 | You Might Want to Pre-Order the Exclusive Ashe Funko Pop Right Now