As Blizzard wraps up 2023, it’s got a lot to share. In its end-of-year review, Blizzard summarized the past year by looking at the numbers, the community, and the culture surrounding one of gaming’s biggest names. And it even snuck in a few teasers too.
Blizzard president Mike Ybarra posted the company’s end-of-year review on Dec. 20. Taking a glance at everything that’s happened, from Diablo 4 to Season of Discovery, Ybarra commented on Blizzard’s successes in 2023. Starting with the games, Ybarra emphasized the “amazing launch” of Diablo 4 and the strides made in the franchise with new seasons and a new class. He also said WoW is seeing more players after Dragonflight‘s release, with Blizzard working to ensure all players—Classic and Retail—have fresh and exciting things to do.
After crunching the numbers and highlighting all the cultural steps Blizzard took in 2023, Ybarra switched to the future and what it holds, particularly for Warcraft fans.
“2024 is going to be a massive year for the Warcraft universe, with a collection of anniversaries coming up: 30 years since the first Warcraft game, 20 years of World of Warcraft, ten years of Hearthstone, and the one-year anniversary of Warcraft Rumble,” Ybarra said. To celebrate, Blizzard has “fun activities” planned for all of these impending anniversary events, which will be celebrated within and across the games.
The mention of WarCraft here is more than mildly interesting, seeing as there hasn’t been an RTS entry in the franchise for over two decades. The failure of WarCraft 3: Reforged also seemed to nail the final coffin in the franchise of yore, and it excites me to think Blizzard may, at some point, return to its gaming roots.
On top of that, Diablo 4 will get many new seasons in 2024, Ybarra says, and the game’s first expansion, Vessel of Hatred, is also coming. Diablo 4 has proven a massively successful title, and I believe it won’t be long before we get an official release date.
Last but not least, Ybarra emphasized how Blizzard is now part of Microsoft, with more projects in development that Blizzard will expand on once they get close to ready. Due to the Microsoft merger, Ybarra explained that “so much is possible” in this new era. All in all, Blizzard has a lot in store for next year, and let’s hope it’s as awesome as it sounds.
