BlizzCon 2026 Opening Ceremony: Starcraft Returns, Diablo V Announced, Warcraft news and more

BlizzCon 2026’s opening ceremony pushed Blizzard’s biggest franchises in multiple directions at once. StarCraft is coming back in 2030 as an original open-world shooter, while Diablo V is targeting spring 2029 with a story set after Sanctuary has already fallen. For developers, that signals major genre and narrative pivots rather than simple sequels.

Diablo IV is still getting substantial support in the meantime. Season of Hell’s Legacy arrives September 15 with the Prime Evils, Deckard Cain, Nightmare Rifts, anniversary rewards, and legacy gear, and the Amazon class is planned for the first half of 2027. Blizzard also confirmed a Diablo-themed animated series is in development with Netflix, extending the IP beyond games.

World of Warcraft is splitting its attention between the Worldsoul Saga and a new “Forever” path. Update 12.2, Eclipse, advances the current saga, The Last Titan is positioned as the finale, and World of Warcraft: Forever launches November 4, 2026 with beta on September 17. Forever adds three new zones, over 1,000 quests, nine dungeons, two raids, and a new Skyborne race.

The most surprising production-side reveal may be Warcraft III: Reforged’s new Forsaken Kingdom campaign, the first new story content in over 23 years for the RTS. It ships with update 3.0, which also brings a graphics overhaul and a revamped World Editor. Hearthstone, Overwatch, and Heroes of the Storm all got meaningful updates too, including a new Overwatch support hero, Hearthstone’s Monk class in 2027, and Xal’atath joining HotS on September 28.