Here's what's happening at this month's digital BlizzConline
Including first looks, developer Q&As, more.
Later this month, Blizzard will be holding a special digital-only version of its long-running BlizzCon gaming convention (following the cancellation of last year's in-person event as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic), and the developer has now shared preliminary details of the activities planned to run over its two-day duration.
This year's BlizzConline, as Blizzard is determined to call it, is described as an "all-digital community celebration and exhibition of Blizzard games and universes" and will run from 19th-20th February. It's a free event, and will be available to watch on the BlizzCon website, as well as various streaming platforms, including Twitch and YouTube.
Blizzard says it'll be "celebrating some fun milestones, shining a spotlight on the epic things the Blizzard community has been up to, and sharing the latest Blizzard game news with everyone" across the event's two day run-time, and has assembled a schedule of activities, gaming competitions, and pre-produced segments to do just that.
Proceedings get underway on Friday, 19th February, at 10pm in the UK/2pm PST, with an opening segment that will feature a first look at "some of the latest game content the development teams have been working on" - which will presumably include more details on the highly anticipated likes of Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4.
After that, a 3-hour-plus schedule of events will begin across six different themed channels, featuring Q&A talks, developer panels, artist demos, and more.
Day 2 kicks off a little earlier, at 8pm in the UK/12pm PST on Saturday, 20th February. Once again, multiple channels will be broadcasting a range of different activities, this time "shining a spotlight on the global Blizzard community, including the winners and outstanding entries in the Community Showcase contests and exhibitions."
Fans will be hoping Blizzard can finally deliver the goods this year after a succession of less-than-stellar BlizzCon outings - including a disastrous showing in 2018, and a 2019 follow-up that threatened to be completely overshadowed by Blizzard CEO J. Allen Brack's limp non-apology regarding the controversial suspension of Hearthstone player Chung "Blitzchung" Ng Wai.
Blizzard says it'll be sharing a full schedule of BlizzConline's events and segments over the coming weeks, and notes that those unable to catch the show for any reason will be able to watch for free later via its BlizzConline video archives.