BlizzCon 2024 has officially been cancelled, despite initial plans for the event to return to annual cadence. Per a new blog from Blizzard Entertainment, the company is “approaching this year differently” with various celebrations set to take place in-person and online in the coming months. Blizzard plans to return to the BlizzCon format in future, but this year will be an exception.
The reason for the unexpected cancellation was not made clear in Blizzard’s latest update, but the company has reassured fans that the decision was “not made lightly” as “BlizzCon remains a very special event” for the entire company.
It’s fair to assume a cavalcade of circumstances inspired the cancellation of BlizzCon. This is the first year the company has operated as a subsidiary of Microsoft, and there may still be shifts and changes happening due to its acquisition. It’s also a slower year for Blizzard releases – seasonal content for Diablo IV and Overwatch 2 continues to land, but there’s no real heavy-hitting games planned for 2024 (for now).
Read: Overwatch 2 has a very different relationship with esports now
There are also a number of smaller events taking place this year that provide opportunity to engage with Blizzard games and their player bases: Blizzard will be at Gamescom, and it will support Overwatch Champions Series shows at Dreamhack Dallas and Dreamhack Stockholm.
As announced, the company is also currently planning “multiple, global, in-person events to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Warcraft” which may function as a mini-BlizzCon for fans of the Warcraft franchise.
“While these events are distinct from BlizzCon, we’re harnessing all of our creativity and imagination to ensure that they carry the same spirit of celebration and togetherness,” Blizzard Entertainment said.
“Our hope is that these experiences – alongside several live-streamed industry events where we’ll keep you up to date with what’s happening in our game universes – will capture the essence of what makes the Blizzard community so special.”
Those looking forward to attending the Warcraft celebrations should stay tuned for more details. As for anyone keen for the next BlizzCon, it sounds like there’ll be a long wait for more news.
