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More Tar Heels say “Yes, and” to majors
Kate Blizzard (Romance languages and environmental science) is one of many students who dive deep into two academic disciplines.
WoW Forever Beta Extended to Friday, Name Reservations Go Live Tuesday
The World of Warcraft Forever beta has been incredibly popular, but just like any other beta, it has to come to an end as the full launch approaches. But Blizzard has extended the beta by a couple of days.
Jeff Kaplan Doesn't Engage With Overwatch After Leaving Blizzard: ‘I’ve Literally Not Played The Game Since April 2021’
The original director of the hero shooter is now working on a western game called The Legend of California
Backlash grows as 'World of Warcraft: Midnight' continues to represent the most painfully, miserably weak writing in all of Blizzard (12.1.5 SPOILERS)
I'm convinced Blizzard wants me to hate WoW: Retail, as backlash grows to one of its weakest character deaths in recent memory. Maybe ... ever?
In Pittsburgh, Medicare Advantage shopping can be a trial. AI to the rescue?
If there was ever a job tailor-made for artificial intelligence, choosing a Medicare Advantage plan is it. Seniors in Western Pennsylvania have a blizzard...
Blizzard Is Making WoW Forever's Controversial Skyborne Race Look Worse On Purpose, And That's A Good Thing
Standard-definition elf
Blizzard is changing the appearance of WoW: Forever's new Skyborne race in response to community feedback
A new blog post from the World of Warcraft: Forever team confirms the models for Skyborne elves are being reworked following feedback, coming early 2027.
Inside Microsoft's plan to boost Xbox, Battle.net on PC — "Right now, it is simply very hard to work with Xbox," said Asha Sharma, with plans to fix it
Microsoft has long identified Battle.net as a key part of its Activision-Blizzard acquisition, and at yesterday's Town Hall with Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, we got more hints about the future.
Overwatch Season 5 skins and Mythics Revealed by Blizzard
Get ready for a spooky season in Overwatch
Overwatch’s Latest China Exclusive Has Fans Ready To Crash Out: ‘I Still Don’t Know How People Defend Blizzard For This’
Shion, Kiriko, Reaper, and more are the latest heroes to reap the benefits of Blizzard and NetEase’s partnership, but only in China
Blizzard Cracks Down on Gold Selling in World of Warcraft Forever — and Streamers Are in the Firing Line
World of Warcraft: Classic has had a gold selling problem for its entire existence, but with Forever, Blizzard seems hard-set on reversing that trend, and some streamers are getting caught in the act.
Russian state hackers use new RedFlick technique to push malware
The Russian state actor Star Blizzard has been using a new malware installation tactic dubbed "RedFlick" to deploy its signature CosmicPulse backdoor.
Blizzard Survey Suggests New Classes Coming To WoW: Forever
Warden, Necromancer, and what sounds a lot like a vampire are also on the list
Bobby Kotick’s lawyers sent me a bad email (and later apologized)
The message I had received was unsettling—for a moment. Then it was just really confusing. Back on January 20 of this year, at 5:15pm ET, I received an email with the subject line “Legal Correspondence re Bobby Kotick.” It was from the law firm Clare Locke, a firm I’d heard had been emailing reporters in recent years about their coverage of Kotick, the former, longtime CEO of Activision Blizzard. The letter was threatening. A lawyer from the firm introduced themselves as “defamation counsel to Bobby Kotick.” They issued a “demand” that I “correct” a Game File article I’d published a week prior. The article that had irked them had been a scoop of sorts. I’d written about a a 2022 lawsuit brought by a Swedish pension fund, AP7, over Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard. The suit wasn’t news, but I was first to review and report about Kotick’s extensive pushback to the fund’s claims. The pension fund’s core contention was that the sale had been rushed by Kotick to avoid the consequences of sexual misconduct scandals swirling around the company in 2021. (He’d not been accused of misconduct himself in those suits, to be clear.) As I wrote at the time, Kotick had denied the allegations of the rushed sale. Beyond that, Kotick used a December 2025 reply to the Swedish fund’s lawsuit to assign blame for those workplace scandals, the bad press and even for the AP7 lawsuit. I’d found Kotick’s arguments novel and newsworthy. Across nearly 3,000 words, I explained Kotick’s take: that a Swedish gaming company was behind the Swedish fund’s lawsuit (the Embracer group; they denied it); that the Microsoft-Activision deal was not rushed and was secured at what Kotick felt history had proven to be an optimal price for shareholders; that he believed a conspiracy of people at unions government agencies, PR firms and the media had spun up claims of widespread workplace misconduct at Activision Blizzard in 2021. The article gave context for all of this, letting readers assess the claims and weigh their credibility. As I’d later write to Kotick’s lawyers: I would be surprised if you could point to any news article about Bobby Kotick in the last five years that has spent more of its wordcount articulating his point of view. He is welcome to do an interview with Game File any time. Nonetheless, there they were in my inbox that Tuesday evening: Clare Locke, the law firm that secured a $787.5 million settlement from Fox News over false statements about voting machines. They were emailing me, threatening that failure to comply with their demand could support a claim of “actual malice,” a legal standard for libel. Unless… Unless, they said, I added a key paragraph to my article. This was a paragraph that I already knew Kotick’s lawyers had been emailing reporters about for at least a year, and it was a paragraph that was already in my article. The paragraph they wanted is from a 2023 settlement that California’s Civil Rights Department struck with Activision Blizzard. The settlement had closed a two-year-old lawsuit over alleged sexual discrimination at the game maker. The paragraph basically said that claims of systemic or widespread sexual harassment—or of execs like Kotick tolerating such behavior—had never been proven. I’d already seen proof that Kotick’s lawyers had pushed for the settlement’s language to be added to reports about 2021 sexual discrimination and misconduct lawsuits brought against Activision Blizzard by California and, separately, by the U.S. federal government (both suits were since settled). I knew that Kotick and his lawyers felt that the California settlement language should be mentioned in the same breath as references to an article he hated and denied, a November 2021 Wall Street Journal article claiming Kotick knew “for years” of sexual misconduct at Activision Blizzard. So, in the Game File article that Clare Locke emailed me about, in the interest of ensuring I was being fair and balanced regarding the person I was covering, I had already included the following excerpt from the California settlement [emphasis added in bold]: (Kotick has repeatedly pushed back against that November article in the Wall Street Journal, citing among other things, language from a court-approved consent decree as part of Activision’s 2023 $54 million settlement over the California suit. It states: “no court or any independent investigation has substantiated any allegations that: there has been systemic or widespread sexual harassment at Activision Blizzard [or] that Activision Blizzard senior executives ignored, condoned, or tolerated a culture of systemic harassment, retaliation, or discrimination.”) On the evening of January 20, I was incredulous. How do you write a four page legal threat about a week-old article and miss this? While scrambling to also make my kids dinner, I wrote a lengthy reply to Clare Locke’s lawyers, basically asking them to cool it with the threats and to start making sense. In part, I wrote: I hope you can understand why I am having trouble understanding what you’re asking for, when the statement you’re demanding to see in Game File’s article already appears in Game File’s article. Actual malice, as you know, refers to a reckless disregard for the truth. I’m not sure what your argument is when my article already states your client’s position. Here is where I should remind you, the reader, that I am an independent journalist. I publish on Substack, and have availed myself of the Substack Defender program that provides writers on the platform with legal support. But I’m no Wall Street Journal or New York Times, nor even IGN or GameSpot when it comes to such things as, well, having a legal department. There are more fun things for me to do as an independent journalist than writing back to a powerful law firm representing a very rich person. On the evening of January 20th, I was just trying to cook some pasta, broccoli and chicken nuggets for hungry twins. Nevertheless, I wrote back to them. Two hours later, I got a reply. Summarizing: A lawyer for Clare Locke said they’d “reviewed an incomplete version” of my article and they “apologize for the confusion.” (My guess: Someone didn’t read past the piece’s paywall, even though they’d had a full week to scrounge up the funds to do so. What I’d published above the paywall was balanced, as was what came after.)1 That was almost that, but something about the situation bothered me. The letter had been marked “confidential.” I hadn’t agreed to that, and I disliked the idea that powerful people on the beat that I cover would act like they could unilaterally control what I might tell my readers about. On the morning of the 21st, having already gotten the powerful law firm to back off, I oh-so-wisely re-approached them with just one more thing. I thanked them for clearing things up the night before but noted that I’d never agreed to keep their letter confidential. I’m all for agreeing with a source to keep things off the record, but that’s the thing. We have to agree. You can’t just declare it. I’m not bound by that. I wrote to Clare Locke’s lawyer and said, in part: I trust the matter is resolved. It was disappointing to have to spend less time with my kids last night in order to address your legal letter. Family time’s precious. I will add, for clarity’s sake, that, while your letter stipulated that it was confidential, I did not agree to those terms. In the future, should you wish to communicate with me confidentially, I am happy to agree to classifying our communication as “off the record” prior to the actual communication—as is standard with any professional journalist. The firm’s lawyer replied, not directly addressing the confidentiality issue but asserting that the matter was resolved. Why I didn’t write about this until now In May, I told this story on an episode of Simon Parkin’s podcast My Perfect Console, but I held off on sharing it directly with Game File readers. I held off to avoid stepping on the toes of another reporter, the journalist Mikhail Klimentov. He’d interviewed me in the spring of 2025 about an investigation he was working on regarding Bobby Kotick lawyers pressing the media to add the California settlement language to stories referencing the 2021 lawsuits. And about how some outlets had changed their stories and how some simply deleted them. Initially, I was a third-party source for Klimentov’s reporting, providing on-the-record context about the state of the games media. I’d heard about the letters but hadn’t put the time into pursuing the story. I thought it was interesting, and I was glad he was covering it. When the outlet that Klimentov was going to run his reporting in dropped the story, I began talking to him about potentially publishing his reporting on Game File. This was tentative. Then, in January, when I got my own Clare Locke letter, I told Klimentov that I didn’t think it would make sense for me to publish him, not with me now being part of the story. I had my own version of this situation to tell. But I wished him well and said I’d refrain from telling my tale until he could get his reporting out there. Last Friday, Klimentov finally ran his investigation, in a nearly 48-minute video report for People Make Games. It covers various Clare Locke letters, how media outlets reacted to them and what to make of all this. His video weighs the merits of Kotick’s request and looks at some of the articles that were changed (one of which had a glaring error). I highly recommend watching it: (Note, I did some editorial consulting for a People Make Games video last year but nothing to do with this report.) While many outlets haven’t left any public evidence that they updated their Kotick coverage at Kotick’s counsel’s request, at least one has. Back in October 2025, the mainstream outlet Reuters applied the most transparent article update I’ve seen. On the 3rd of the month, they published an article about the state of the Swedish pension fund’s lawsuit. Days later, they added this: In an October 7 letter sent after publication of this article, Kotick’s defamation counsel disputed claims of widespread harassment at Activision. “Not a single investigation, court finding, verdict, or ruling ever concluded that there was any merit” to the allegations of widespread harassment at Activision, Tom Clare and Nick Brechbill of Clare Locke wrote. I’ve never added a statement to my article on Game File, because none was needed. Not for fairness’ sake, nor to meet any demands of Kotick’s lawyers. I’ve nevertheless wanted to be transparent with Game File readers. If someone powerful is questioning my reporting, is threatening a lawsuit over it… if that threat is part of a pattern involving other games media outlets and if, in my case, the whole thing ran into a ridiculous ditch, I want you to know about it. I also share this as a real example of how I handle threats to Game File. I stand up for my own reporting, even when it’s not comfortable to do so. (In that same category of standing up for the work I do, I’ll point to an incident in late August. Asocial media post I published to X/Twitter regarding reporting I did about Take Two and GTA VI was hit by bogus copyright claim by a firm working for the publisher. I pushed back and got it reversed; even while a bigger games media outlet let themselves be censored. This is the other reason I’m sharing this story: To emphasize that dealing with threats from powerful people is one of the costs of covering the video game industry independently and as fearlessly as possible. This is where you come in. Your support, through free and paid subscriptions (sign up here!), can help me keep doing that. It can ensure that I’ve got the back-up I need. And it can help make fiascoes like this even less of a worry, so I can spend my evenings dealing with more important things, such as making sure I steam the kids’ broccoli just right. 1 That pension fund lawsuit I wrote about in January has all but gone away. In May, the fund and Activision Blizzard owner Microsoft agreed to settle. Lawyers for the fund brokered a $250 million settlement for former Activision Blizzard shareholders. In the settlement, the fund’s lawyers changed their rhetoric. Where once they’d questioned the meaning of the California settlement language, they adopted a version of it for themselves. Several weeks ago, while seeking to get a court to sign off on the terms of the settlement, they proposed their fee for their work in the case: $60 million.
WoW Forever Beta Player Dies to a Near Perfect Griefing Tactic That I'm Sure Blizzard Will Patch Out
World of Warcraft Forever’s beta marches on, and all evidence points to it being a massive success. But it’s worth remembering this is a beta, and a beta is for reporting issues. Enter one of the best WoW griefing tactics I’ve ever seen.
As World of Warcraft: Forever's beta popularity grows, Blizzard has yet again had to increase the server cap
Executive producer of World of Warcraft Holly Longdale broke the news, as people continue to hop in ahead of the beta release in November.
This ‘World of Warcraft: Forever’ Mod Blocks All Interactions With Asmongold Fans
The beta for the hotly anticipated World of Warcraft: Forever has been marred by fans of the streamer Asmongold who have filled the game’s public spaces with spam and slurs. To fix the issue, a player named Solastro created a mod called OlympusMute that hides any chats from players
Testing the Waters
By studying how warming oceans affect coastal fish, senior Kate Blizzard is shaping a clearer vision for her future in marine science.
Blizzard layoffs are reportedly imminent, days after an exciting BlizzCon and a seemingly popular World of Warcraft: Forever beta
A second wave of Xbox cuts will reportedly affect World of Warcraft maker Blizzard.
StarCraft 'Won't Be Exclusive,' Says Blizzard
But it won't say if that's 'console exclusive' or something else
BlizzCon 2026 Debuts Halftime Show With YOASOBI
The J-pop duo electrified the Overwatch World Cup as Simu Liu, T-Pain, deadmau5 and more joined Blizzard's long-awaited return to Anaheim.
Blizzard developer says World of Warcraft: Forever's beta numbers are the "craziest" he's seen in 17 years
World of Warcraft: Forever's beta was overwhelmed by players this week, with a Blizzard developer calling the numbers the biggest he's seen in 17 years.
I asked if Warcraft 3, WoW: Forever, and Heroes of the Storm will come to Xbox — they all said the same thing ...
The same old answer ... a tale as old as time. Will Warcraft and other Blizzard PC titles come to Xbox, PlayStation, or Nintendo Switch? Blizzard isn't saying "no" ... but it's not exactly saying yes.
As Fans Flood the World of Warcraft: Forever Beta, Dev Says It's Putting Up 'The Craziest Numbers I've Seen in 17 Years Working at Blizzard'
World of Warcraft: Forever looks like it could be a smash hit after the launch of the beta was overrun with eager fans, surprising even Blizzard itself.
The Business of Belonging: Turning Audience into Community
Featuring Johanna Faries, President , Blizzard Entertainment; Justine Palefsky, Cofounder and CEO, Kindred and Alphonzo Terrell, Founder and CEO, Spill. Moderated by Morgan Brady, Executive Director, Community and Membership, Fast Company
Blizzard Delays Diablo 4's Big 30th Anniversary Season 15 Kick-Off After A Flood Of Error Codes
Season of Hell's Legacy has a hell of a rough launch
New 'StarCraft' game announced, but it's a grim open-world shooter and it's not coming until 2030
Blizzard Entertainment is returning to StarCraft with an all-new game that's leaving the series' real-time strategy roots behind.
"What would a WoW 2 give you that World of Warcraft: Forever isn't already giving you?" - Blizzard addresses the MMO elephant in the room
Will Blizzard ever make a World of Warcraft 2? The existence of WoW Forever makes that seem incredibly unlikely.
Why Blizzard Entertainment is expanding beyond games and into TV
With a new "Diablo" animated show in the works at Netflix, Blizzard Entertainment is looking to catapult its video game IP into the film and TV world.
Was Rhode Island denied $19M in aid as political retribution by Trump?
Rhode Island's congressional delegation is seeking answers from federal agencies on why the state was denied aid after February blizzard.
Diablo IV Switch 2 Performance And Resolution Officially Revealed
Blizzard also details Switch 2 features, net requirements & more
Blizzard Explains How Diablo 5 Avoids Diablo 4's Open-World Problem
Overlay maps will also be in Diablo 5 from day one
‘StarCraft’ Is No ‘Destiny 2’ Live-Service Replacement, Blizzard Confirms
'StarCraft' is a shooter breaking past its RTS roots, but if 'Destiny 2' players were hoping it could be a replacement for their dead game, it's not happening.
Blizzard Entertainment Announced Diablo V
During BlizzCon 2026, the development team revealed the first details of the world.
Blizzard Insists There Are 'Many Reasons to Keep Playing' Diablo 4 as Fans Debate End of Expansions and Diablo 5 in 2029
Blizzard has insisted Diablo 4 still has “bright support” as the community debates the shock news that no more expansions will be released for the game and with Diablo 5 looming over the horizon.
Blizzard confirms no more Diablo 4 expansions from now until Diablo 5's release
Lord of Hatred is, indeed, Diablo 4's final expansion.
World of Warcraft Forever Officially Brings Gamepad Controls Blizzard's MMO
Blizzard brings official game controllers support to WoW to give players new and old more choice
The Witcher 3 Geralt Skin for Diablo 4 Barbarians Revealed
CD Projekt and Blizzard have released a first look at the Geralt-themed Barbarian skin for Diablo 4, but you'll need to preorder The Witcher 3 expansion Songs of the Past on Battle.net to get it.
Diablo IV x The Witcher III: Wild Hunt Collab Unveiled, Here's A First Look
As part of a new partnership between Blizzard & CD Projekt Red
Diablo 4 Annual Expansions Are Done As Blizzard Focuses On Seasonal Stories Leading Up To Diablo 5
Three years in, a new sequel lies on the horizon
The World of Warcraft "Classic+" rumours were true and it's called World of Warcraft: Forever
Blizzard has confirmed World of Warcraft: Forever, the long-rumoured Classic+ experience, launching 4th November with a beta this week.
StarCraft is back, but it's not the RTS you remember - it's an open-world shooter coming spring 2030
Blizzard has revealed StarCraft, a new open-world shooter due spring 2030, led by former Far Cry producer Dan Hay.
Blizzard announced Diablo and StarCraft games that are years away ‘to show confidence’
Blizzard’s president says the company will ship Diablo and StarCraft on time…
Diablo 5 Officially Revealed at BlizzCon 2026, Set to Arrive Spring 2029
Blizzard has officially announced Diablo 5 at BlizzCon 2026, confirming a Spring 2029 release window for the next mainline entry in its action RPG series. The reveal came during the event's opening ceremony alongside a cinematic marking Diablo's 30th anniversary. According to game director Joe...
Esquire First Look: Diablo V Is Doubling Down on Darkness
Only three years after ‘Diablo IV,’ Blizzard reveals the next sequel of its hit RPG series exclusively to Esquire.
Overwatch Reveals First Look at New Omnic Hero Coming Later This Year
Blizzard has teased another new Overwatch Hero after revealing Doctrine just moments ago.
BlizzCon 2026 Opening Ceremony: Starcraft Returns, Diablo V Announced, Warcraft news and more
I’ve been at Blizzard a long time, and I’ve got a bunch of BlizzCons under my belt. Do you know how hard all these announcements were to hold in as we prepared for BlizzCon 2026? I can’t even believe this is real, man, like…okay, sorry, I’m locked in. Whether you’re watching it all unfold live […]
World of Warcraft Forever Sets Release Date for November
Blizzard will launch "World of Warcraft Forever," a game set during the first year of the original 2004 "WoW," Nov. 4.
Blizzard's Big BlizzCon 2026 Opening Ceremony Mic Drop Is World of Warcraft Forever
Blizzard ended its BlizzCon 2026 Opening Ceremony with the announcement of World of Warcraft Forever.
'World of Warcraft Forever' is Blizzard's take on Classic+, revamping vanilla Azeroth in new ways for perpetual expansion
World of Warcraft Forever is Blizzard's long-rumored "Classic+" take, designed to keep Warcraft's old-school social-first gameplay intact while providing new content.
Blizzard Shadow-Drops New Campaign for Warcraft 3 at BlizzCon 2026
Blizzard has shadow-dropped a brand new campaign for its real-time strategy game Warcraft 3.
Diablo 5 to Release in 2029 From Blizzard
"Diablo 5" is in development at Xbox's Blizzard Entertainment. The game is targeting a 2029 release date.
Diablo IV: Age of Hatred Collection coming to Switch 2 on September 15
Blizzard Entertainment will release Diablo IV: Age of Hatred Collection for Switch 2 on September 15 for $69.99 / £62.99 / €69.99, the company announced.
Diablo 4 coming to Nintendo Switch 2
As announced by Activision Blizzard today, Diablo 4 is receiving a new Nintendo Switch 2 version with the Age of Hatred Collection. It will be available on September 15, 2026. Diablo 4: Age of Hatred Collection includes the base game and expansions. According to the Nintendo eShop listing, HDR and touchscreen support are included. The action RPG first came out...
StarCraft 3 Set for 2030 Release
A new open-world shooter "StarCraft" game is set to debut in 2030 from Blizzard Entertainment.
StarCraft 3 Set for 2030 Release
A new open-world shooter "StarCraft" game is set to debut in 2030 from Blizzard Entertainment.
Blizzard revives 'Heroes of the Storm,' starting with new hero Xal'atath
Blizzard's "maintenance mode" MOBA is getting its first new hero in years in the form of Warcraft's big current antagonist.
Diablo TV Series in the Works at Netflix
Netflix is developing an animated TV series based on Blizzard Entertainment's "Diablo" video game franchise.
Diablo TV Series in the Works at Netflix
Netflix is developing an animated TV series based on Blizzard Entertainment's "Diablo" video game franchise.
For The First Time In 6 Years, Blizzard Is Bringing A New Character To Heroes Of The Storm
Although it had moved on from major support for the game, WoW's big bad is ready for some MOBA action.
Blizzard Announces Diablo V, Arriving Spring 2029
The action role-playing game is set a half-century after Diablo IV, after Sanctuary has fallen. - Game Informer
Blizzard Announces World Of Warcraft: Forever, Expanding Vanilla WoW With New Zones, Raids, 1,000 New Quests Set
The long-rumored Classic+ mode also introduces a new playable race. - Game Informer
BlizzCon 2026 Opening Ceremony live report - all the news and announcements as Blizzard's convention returns
BlizzCon returns with rumours of a new StarCraft game, Diablo 4 on Switch 2, WoW Classic Plus, a major new Overwatch update, and more.
Former employee sues Activision Blizzard, claiming sexual harassment and discrimination
A former employee of Activision Blizzard is suing the Santa Monica-based "Call of Duty" maker, alleging she was sexually harassed and subject to retaliation. In a lawsuit filed in Los
Blizzard Workers Secure Contract Covering AI Use & Layoff Protections
Blizzard Entertainment workers signed a new contract with major protections at the Microsoft-owned studio.
Microsoft-owned Blizzard, video game union ratify contract
Nearly 1,900 employees across multiple divisions of Microsoft subsidiary Blizzard Entertainment have ratified a union contract with the video game developer, following two years of bargaining. Communications Workers of America,
Microsoft-owned Blizzard, video game union ratify contract
Employees across Microsoft-owned video game developer Blizzard have ratified a union contract with the company.
Blizzard video game workers ratify union contract
Nearly 1,900 Blizzard Entertainment video game workers have ratified their first union contract covering wage increases, remote work protections, and AI workplace rules.
Blizzard Entertainment Workers Ratify First Contracts
The deals require management to bargain over the use of AI in the workplace and enshrine layoff protections at the Microsoft-owned company.
Almost 1,900 Blizzard workers ratify first union contract with Microsoft
Blizzard Entertainment has secured a first union contract with parent company Microsoft, ratified by a workforce vote c…
Blizzard Workers Ratify Union Contract With Microsoft
Blizzard's many disparate unions are also being condensed into three groups for ease of future bargaining
After Years Of Company Stalling, Blizzard Workers Win Mega-Contract That Applies To All Unionized Teams
"Really strong" layoff protections are just the tip of the iceberg
Blizzard union workers ratify contract covering 1,900 employees
Union members have secured guardrails around generative AI usage, layoff protections, remote and hybrid work benefits, and more.
'Overwatch' Won't Get Its Most Exciting New Feature In Years Until Next Season
Blizzard delayed adding Unvaulted Passes to Overwatch until the start of Season 5
Blizzard’s StarCraft Site Breaks Itself Days Before BlizzCon, and Fans Already Decoded a Hidden 2575 Horror ARG
Amid various StarCraft rumors, the official website starts glitching suspiciously just one week ahead of BlizzCon 2026, and fans discover ARG.
Blizzard Launches New StarCraft ARG Teaser Amid IP Handover Rumors
Blizzard is teasing a new StarCraft game through an online ARG, despite rumors that a South Korean publisher would take over the IP.
Blizzard Starts Teasing StarCraft News with Cryptic Secret Messages
Ahead of BlizzCon 2026, Blizzard is getting StarCraft fans' hopes up
Blizzard Might Be Teasing A New StarCraft Game
There's something odd happening on the StarCraft website. While the content still features StarCraft Remastered, which launched back in 2017, the page now seems to be glitching out, with various elements, images, and text blocks flickering on-screen randomly. Could Blizzard be teasing a new StarCraft game?
The next StarCraft may not be made by Blizzard, according to a new report
We've waited years for a follow-up to StarCraft 2, and we may actually get one - just not from the usual source.
CD PROJEKT RED teams up with Blizzard Entertainment
The team at CD PROJEKT RED is incredibly proud to team up with Blizzard and the Diablo IV team, kicking off a partnership between two studios with a deep passion for immersive worlds and memorable RPGs that players never forget. And what better way to begin, than by bringing the dark fantasy world of The Witcher to Battle.net?
BlizzCon 2026 Sets T-Pain, Simu Liu, deadmau5, YOASOBI and More Celeb Guests
T-Pain, Simu Liu, deadmau5, YOASOBI and more celebrities will be making special appearances for the return of Blizzard’s BlizzCon fan event this September in Anaheim, California. Presented by Blizzard...
Blizzard Reportedly Leads Xbox as 'Top-Performing' Studio Thanks to Overwatch and Diablo
Blizzard Entertainment is reportedly Microsoft's golden child after Overwatch and Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred helped it become the "top-performing" Xbox studio.
Blizzard is now the "top performing" Xbox studio, says internal emails — as the Overwatch-maker ends FY26 over-delivering on Microsoft's projections
In leaked emails verified by Windows Central, Blizzard President Johanna Faries celebrated the Xbox division's stunning growth, over-delivering on expectations.
Overwatch’s New Mech Hero, D.Mon, Isn’t ‘D.Va 2.0,’ Blizzard Says
D.Mon is meant to be the ‘icy, cool, and very confident’ leader to D.Va’s more aggressive, dive-based playstyle
Blizzard Officially Reveals Overwatch's Newest Hero, D.Mon, with First Gameplay
D.Mon joins D.Va on D.Roster of Overwatch
Overwatch D.Mon interview: Building D.Mon's kit, personality, and mecha fantasy
We interviewed Team 4 about everything D.Mon!
A Surprise Switch 2 Port Is Coming According To A New Leak
Blizzard's action-RPG is reportedly bound for the Nintendo device next month
Blizzard fire World Of Warcraft developer over use of forbidden magicks to insta-kill bosses for regular players during dungeon run
Blizzard have fired a World Of Warcraft developer after dev-only insta-kill spells were used to take out bosses for regular players during a dungeon run.
If You Aren't Going To BlizzCon 2026, You Can Still Spend Money Like You Are
Cosmetic bundles for Blizzard's biggest games are live now.
ZeniMax Online Studios leadership to exit as part of Xbox cuts
There are major changes happening atop Maryland-based ZeniMax Online Studios, developer of the Elder Scrolls Online, Game File has learned. Joe Burba, a 14-year veteran of the studio who was appointed to run it last July, is departing, along with ESO executive producer Susan Kath, studio game director Rich Lambert and production director Ala Diaz. Their roles were listed among hundreds of others cut last week from the Maryland offices of ZeniMax, in a WARN letter sent to the state by ZeniMax and obtained today by Game File. Tonight, BUrbam Kath, Lambert and Diaz notified Zenimax Online Studios workers of plans to “transition” to a new leadership team consisting of promoted ZOS veterans. That transition will occur “over the next few months,” they told workers, according to a copy of the notice reviewed by Game File. “We will remain in place during the transition period to help ensure a smooth handoff.” Last week, Microsoft laid off of 1,600 workers across its vast gaming teams in locations around the U.S. and abroad. Just who has been impacted and how hard various studios have been hit has been emerging day by day. Game File reported last week that Microsoft/ZeniMax notified officials in Maryland that 379 gaming jobs were being cut across the state. They tallied cuts in two locations: one for ZeniMax Media Inc. (covering Elder Scrolls/Starfield/Fallout-maker Bethesda Game Studios and central Bethesda game publishing) and one for ZeniMax Online Studios (Elder Scrolls Online). More than 200 jobs were cut at the latter. Last week’s totals did not reveal job titles, nor did Microsoft announce any leadership changes in the ZeniMax group. That has now happened. Earlier today, Game File obtained from Maryland officials a breakdown of the 379 impacted roles, which, extraordinarily, included “studio head.” Microsoft later confirmed to Game File which studio head that referred to: ZeniMax Online Studios’. Microsoft has since has notified studio employees and internally announced new leadership. ZOS will now be run by Josh Henderson, previously head of business operations at the studio, and Nick Giacomini, who was promoted to game director for ESO last August. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my journalism, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Last week’s news of 200+ cuts at ZeniMax Online Studios generated public sympathy for those workers and questions about the long-term viability of the Elder Scrolls Online. ESO is a massively multiplayer online game that inherently persists on the strength of new content being developed for it. Earlier today, fans and workers in Maryland protested the cuts at the ZeniMax teams in a rally organized by the Communication Workers of America, the union that represents many of the impacted employees. Regarding concerns around the game, a community manager stated on Saturday: “The plan is still to deliver great content, and we will hopefully have an update soon.” In their note to the studio today, the outgoing leaders of ZeniMax Online Studios predicted “growth” for the game: We have tremendous confidence in Josh and Nick, the future of this studio, and the continued growth of ESO. With exciting experiences still ahead for our players as we wrap up work for Update 51 and beyond, we believe that your passion, creativity, and commitment to each other and the community will continue serving as the heartbeat of ESO. The list of jobs cut in the ZeniMax WARN notice in Maryland includes several very senior roles, including: Studio Head Studio Operations Director Studio Game Director Studio Audio Director Studio Art Manager Vice President and Controller VP, Global Sales & Business Development While some of those job descriptions match the exiting ZOS leadership team, Game File couldn’t verify if all were from that studio. The full list of cut roles shared by Maryland officials also covers workers at Bethesda Game Studios and its central publishing office. The following is an excerpt: The list of 379 eliminated ZeniMax jobs in Maryland also includes: four animators three bilingual CS (community service) leads for Chinese, Italian, and Japanese a creative director for the Elder Scrolls Online Player Life Cycle two food service workers seven producers more than 60 senior QA testers. and many others The WARN notice states that almost all of the 379 workers were notified of their layoff on July 6. In fine print, it states: “Approximately 9 employees were notified of the elimination of their position prior to July 6, 2026.” A 2021 mega-merger scaled back Microsoft announced in 2020 that it intended to buy ZeniMax and its network of game studios in 2020, and closed the $7.5 billion deal in March 2021. The purchase, which preceded Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, added several award-winning studios to Microsoft’s portfolio, including Bethesda (Elder Scrolls, Fallout), Arkane (Dishonored), and id Software (Doom). The studios’ output since then included a 2024 Game of the Year contented from MachineGames in the form of Indiana Jones and the Great Circle along with Starfield from Bethesda and the poorly-received Redfall from Arkane Austin. In recent years, a Microsoft repeatedly in cutback mode closed ZeniMax’s Tango Gameworks (which was reconstituted by Krafton) and closed Arkane Austin. The Xbox cuts last week have hit the ZeniMax group hard, with 158 jobs eliminated in Texas, many of them at id, and 379 from the ZeniMax teams in Maryland. Xbox also said last week that it would be entering a consultation process around Arkane Lyon, a process expected to end in a sale, shutdown or other form of divestment. The Lyon team has been working on a game tied to Marvel’s Blade vampire-hunting super-hero.
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