New StarCraft Shooter Revealed, Diablo 5 Dated | BlizzCon 2026
Blizzard revived StarCraft at BlizzCon 2026 as a 2030 open-world shooter from ex-Far Cry lead Dan Hay, and dated Diablo V for spring 2029. Everything announced, and what it means.
BlizzCon 2026 (12-13 September) was Blizzard's big comeback show, and it revived two of its most dormant franchises in a single night. StarCraft is back, but not as the real-time strategy game fans expected: it returns as an open-world shooter aimed at 2030, led by former Far Cry director Dan Hay, for PC and Xbox Series X/S. And Diablo V is finally official, dated for spring 2029 with the grim tagline "Sanctuary has fallen." Add a vanilla-style World of Warcraft "Forever" mode, a surprise new Warcraft III campaign and Overwatch's tenth-birthday hero, and this was the loudest Blizzard has been in years. Here is everything that was announced and what it actually means.
For years the joke was that Blizzard had forgotten it owned StarCraft. At BlizzCon 2026 the company answered in the loudest possible way, and then complicated it. The headline reveal was the return of StarCraft after more than a decade dormant, alongside the first numbered Diablo since 2023 and a wave of nostalgia plays across Warcraft and Overwatch. But the StarCraft reveal came with a twist that immediately divided the fanbase. Here is the full rundown from the show floor.
New StarCraft revealed: an open-world shooter, not an RTS
StarCraft is coming back, and it is not a real-time strategy game. The new StarCraft was revealed as an open-world shooter, an action-driven take on the universe rather than the base-building, army-commanding RTS that made the series famous. That single decision defined the show's reception. To a generation who grew up commanding Terran marines from a top-down view, this is either a bold reinvention or a betrayal, and the debate over "is this really StarCraft" started before the trailer had finished.
It is worth being clear about what was actually shown. The reveal was a cinematic cutscene, not gameplay, so what the moment-to-moment shooting feels like is still unknown. Blizzard is selling the setting and the ambition first and the mechanics later, which is normal for a project this far out but also why expectations should stay measured.
When does the new StarCraft come out?
The new StarCraft is targeting a 2030 release. That is a long way off, which fits a project that was only shown as a cinematic. Treat 2030 as a direction of travel rather than a hard date; games revealed this early routinely move.
Is the new StarCraft on PlayStation, or is it Xbox exclusive?
The new StarCraft was announced for PC and Xbox Series X/S. No PlayStation version was confirmed at the show. Blizzard is owned by Microsoft, which is why an Xbox and PC reveal came first, but Microsoft has spent the last couple of years bringing more of its big games to rival platforms, so a later PlayStation release is not ruled out. As of BlizzCon, though, PlayStation was simply not part of the announcement.
Who is making the new StarCraft?
The project is led by Dan Hay, best known for his years directing the Far Cry series. Putting a proven open-world shooter director in charge is the clearest signal of what this game actually is: an open-world action game in the StarCraft universe, not an RTS with a new coat of paint. For many watchers his track record is the main reason the reveal is being taken seriously rather than dismissed as a logo with no game behind it, though it does nothing to reassure fans who wanted an RTS.
Where is the new StarCraft set?
The game is set in the Koprulu Sector, the series' home, roughly 70 years after the events of StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. That time jump gives Blizzard room to tell a new story without being handcuffed to the exact positions of the old factions, while still trading on the Terran, Protoss and Zerg identities fans know.
Diablo V announced for spring 2029
The other megareveal: Diablo V is real, and it is dated for spring 2029. It is the first numbered entry in the series since Diablo IV in 2023, and Blizzard set the tone with a bleak framing, "Sanctuary has fallen," implying the forces of Hell now have the upper hand. After years of live-service seasons, a proper sequel is a statement that the franchise still has a future beyond patches.
Spring 2029 is far enough out that many of the finer systems are still under wraps, but Blizzard did not leave the show short on detail: it named the game's first three playable classes at its "Diablo V: Forging the Next Era" panel.
Diablo V classes: Demon Hunter, Monk and the new Plague Knight
Blizzard confirmed three classes to start. The returning Demon Hunter and Monk are both fan favourites, and they are joined by an all-new Plague Knight, built around disease, pestilence and turning corruption into power. More classes, along with the endgame structure and the online model, are expected to fill in over the next couple of years as the 2029 launch approaches.
Is there a Diablo Netflix series?
Yes. Alongside the game, Blizzard confirmed a Netflix animated Diablo series is in development. It is part of a wider pattern of game companies turning their biggest worlds into streaming shows, and it gives Diablo a mainstream on-ramp well ahead of the 2029 game.
What happens to Diablo IV now?
Diablo IV is not being abandoned the moment its sequel is announced. The current game continues its seasonal cadence, with a new season having rolled out around the show, so there is a multi-year runway of Diablo IV content before Diablo V arrives. A 2029 sequel does not mean the lights go off on the game people are playing today.
Everything else announced at BlizzCon 2026
The two revivals led, but the show was stacked with nostalgia plays across Blizzard's back catalogue.
World of Warcraft "Forever": a vanilla-style Classic+ mode
Blizzard announced World of Warcraft: Forever, a vanilla-era "Classic+" experience that adds new content to the original game rather than freezing it in amber. It is set to launch on 4 November 2026, with testing beginning shortly after the show. For a huge slice of the WoW audience that prefers the older, slower game, an officially expanded classic is a big deal, and the fast launch date makes it one of the most immediately relevant announcements of the show.
Warcraft III Reforged: a surprise new campaign
In one of the show's genuine surprises, Warcraft III Reforged received a brand-new campaign, its first fresh Warcraft III story content in more than two decades, alongside a major patch. After a rocky launch years ago, it is a notable olive branch to strategy fans, and a reminder that Blizzard knows its shooter pivot leaves StarCraft's strategy players wanting, and that the appetite for RTS has not gone away.
Overwatch's tenth-anniversary hero
Overwatch marked its tenth anniversary with a new support hero and fresh content, keeping the hero shooter in the conversation as it hits a milestone. It is the reliable live-service beat of the show rather than a headline, but it rounds out a lineup that touched nearly every major Blizzard franchise.
What BlizzCon 2026 tells us about Blizzard
The throughline is a company mining its own history hard: reviving StarCraft, sequelising Diablo, expanding classic WoW and reanimating Warcraft III all at once. The gamble is the StarCraft genre switch. If the open-world shooter lands, Blizzard will have turned a beloved but genre-limited RTS into something with mass-market reach. If it does not, it will be remembered as the year Blizzard brought StarCraft back and immediately made it something else. Either way, after years of being accused of neglecting its oldest worlds, Blizzard just committed to nearly all of them at once.
Frequently asked questions
Is StarCraft 3 real?
Sort of. A new StarCraft game is real and was revealed at BlizzCon 2026, but it is not the RTS sequel many fans imagined and it is not officially called StarCraft 3. It is a new open-world shooter set in the StarCraft universe, targeting 2030.
Is the new StarCraft an RTS?
No. This is the big surprise. The new StarCraft is an open-world shooter, not a real-time strategy game. Blizzard hired former Far Cry director Dan Hay to lead it, which underlines the shift to open-world action.
When is Diablo 5 coming out?
Diablo V is dated for spring 2029. It is the first numbered Diablo since Diablo IV in 2023.
Is Diablo 5 confirmed?
Yes. Diablo V was officially announced at BlizzCon 2026 with a spring 2029 window and the tagline "Sanctuary has fallen," alongside a separate Netflix animated series.
What classes are in Diablo 5?
Blizzard has revealed three so far: the returning Demon Hunter and Monk, plus a brand-new Plague Knight focused on disease and pestilence. The full class list will be detailed closer to the spring 2029 launch.
Is Diablo 4 still getting updates?
Yes. Diablo IV continues its seasonal content for now, so there is a multi-year run of updates before Diablo V arrives in 2029.
What is WoW "Forever"?
World of Warcraft: Forever is a vanilla-era "Classic+" mode that adds new content to the original game rather than leaving it unchanged. It launches on 4 November 2026.
What was announced at BlizzCon 2026?
The headliners were a new open-world StarCraft shooter (2030) and Diablo V (spring 2029). Blizzard also revealed World of Warcraft: Forever (a Classic+ mode launching 4 November 2026), a new Warcraft III Reforged campaign, and a tenth-anniversary Overwatch hero.
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