BlizzCon 2026: All the Show's Announcements

BlizzCon 2026 took place on September 12–13 in Anaheim and turned out to be the most announcement-packed edition in years. Blizzard revealed Diablo V, brought back StarCraft — but now as an open-world shooter, released a new campaign for Warcraft III for the first time in 23 years, and unveiled a third standalone branch of World of Warcraft. Below is a quick rundown of each reveal.

World of Warcraft: Forever

The show's headline announcement: Forever becomes the third full-fledged version of WoW alongside the modern game and Classic. It's a return to the game's first year, but with content that wasn't in the original: the developers are building out “vanilla” Azeroth wider rather than higher, so the level cap stays 60 forever. The release is set for November 4, 2026, the beta opens on September 17, and no separate purchase is needed — a subscription is enough.

What the game will include at launch:

• three new zones and expansions of already familiar territories;
• more than 1000 new quests;
• nine new dungeons;
• two raids for 10 and 20 players;
• a new playable Skyborne race that chooses its own faction;
• unusual race-and-class combinations such as the dwarf shaman and the Forsaken paladin.

Update 12.2 “Eclipse”

“Eclipse” will be the final major patch of Midnight and will bring the confrontation with Xal'atath — who is closing in on Azeroth's World Soul — to its climax. Players can expect a new zone, a three-boss dungeon, and an eight-boss raid where Xal'atath serves as the final opponent.

The Last Titan

The twelfth expansion will be the finale of the World Soul saga and will take players back to Northrend. Blizzard frames it as the conclusion of more than two decades of Warcraft history, one that simultaneously lays the foundation for the next era. Details are promised in early 2027, after the events of “Eclipse”.

Talebound

A standalone game mode inside WoW built on roguelike principles: its own world, its own classes, and short runs solo or with a group. In the story, the hero is abducted by a storyteller with a love of horror who turns them into a character in his tales — four of them in all. The mode will hit the test server in October.

Forsaken Kingdom Campaign

The first new story for Warcraft III in more than 23 years. The campaign is devoted to the fall of Lordaeron and the transformation of the capital into the Undercity, and in scope it amounts to over 30 hours of gameplay. The biggest surprise — it launched the very day it was announced.

Update 3.0

Alongside the campaign, the game received a major technical update: noticeably improved graphics and a reworked map editor. For a community that has lived on custom maps for years, the latter is arguably even more important than the former.

Diablo V

The fifth installment arrives in spring 2029 and begins where such stories usually end: Sanctuary has fallen, Diablo has won. The game is built around the question of who you need to become when the world is already lost.

Diablo IV: Hell's Legacy Season

The anniversary season marking the series' 30th anniversary kicks off on September 15. The Prime Evils, led by the Lord of Terror, return to Sanctuary, and with them — Deckard Cain, anniversary rewards, and gear that nods to every entry in the series. On the same day, Diablo IV launches on Nintendo Switch 2, and players are once again set upon by Moofisto — the cow boss familiar to veterans.

Amazon Class

The first add-on class for Diablo IV will appear in the first half of 2027. The spear-wielding Amazon brings back one of the series' most recognizable archetypes.

Animated Series

Blizzard and Netflix are working on an animated series set in the Diablo universe. The project is still in development with no details or release date, but it's part of the studio's broader push to adapt its worlds for the screen.

STARCRAFT

The series returns in spring 2030 and changes genre: instead of a real-time strategy game, it's a story-driven open-world shooter. The action once again unfolds in the Koprulu Sector — the franchise's first full-fledged sequel in many years.

Fifth Season and New Hero

The game turns ten years old, and the anniversary season is a packed one. Its central figure is Doctrine, the 54th hero on the roster: a vampiric support character who drains life from enemies and commands bat drones.

Also in the season, alongside them:

• major reworks of Sombra and Roadhog;
• a new map, Watchpoint: Grimsvötn;
• the finale of The Reign of Talon — the game's first-ever year-long story arc;
• a collaboration with LE SSERAFIM.

Blizzard will reveal its plans for the year ahead at a dedicated Overwatch Spotlight presentation in February 2027.

Reign of the Black Empire Expansion

Releasing on October 20, it sends players to an ancient Azeroth in the heyday of the Old Gods. The set's key addition is the Assemble mechanic, which lets you combine two cards into a single, more powerful one — promising the most unpredictable combinations yet.

Monk Class

Hearthstone's first new class in six years arrives in March 2027. The developers describe it as flexible and “fluid” — designed to adapt to the situation on the fly during a match.

Other News

A reworked Journal gathers quests, achievements, and events from every expansion in one place and will keep growing along with the player. In addition, on September 22 a new creature type — Aberrations, spawned by experiments and the influence of the Old Gods — arrives in Battlegrounds.

New Hero: Xal'atath

After six years of quiet, the MOBA is getting a new hero: Xal'atath hits the PTR on September 14 and goes live in the game on the 28th. Blizzard hinted outright that this won't be the end of it, so the project seemingly has a future after all.