BlizzCon returns this November for its first in-person event since 2019
More details to be revealed next month.
BlizzCon is back this November, with its first in-person event since 2019 following several years of digital-only events and no-shows as Blizzard navigated a pandemic and workplace controversy.
As announced on the Blizzard website, BlizzCon 2023 will take place from 3rd-4th November at California's Anaheim Convention Center. Beyond that, details are fairly non-existent at present, but the studio says it'll have news on "ticketing information, cosplay and other competition details, and more" next month.
BlizzCon 2023 will mark the show's first in-person event in four years, following two highly controversial showings in 2018 and 2019 - the first playing host to Blizzard's infamously bungled reveal of free-to-play mobile game Diablo Immortal and the second featuring a limp non-apology from then-CEO J. Allen Brack, who failed to offer much in the way of a convincing response after Blizzard suspended a Hearthstone player for expressing pro-Hong Kong views.
Since then, BlizzCon's in-person event has taken an extended hiatus, with Blizzard opting to skip 2020 as it navigated health and safety considerations stemming from the coronavirus pandemic, and switching to a digital-only format in early 2021 - the same year the studio was forced to reckon with disturbing allegations in a State of California lawsuit accusing it of being a "breeding ground for harassment and discrimination against women".
A digital-only event planned for 2022 was also scrapped, but Blizzard boss Mike Ybarra did eventually confirm the studio intended "to return to a live event that enables us to celebrate the community" in 2023. And here we are.
As to what we can expect to see at this year BlizzCon beyond the usual announcements for Blizzard stalwarts like Hearthstone, World of Warcraft, Diablo, and the now-PvE-deficient Overwatch 2, it's possible the studio might use its big in-person return to formally unveil the "brand-new survival game" it teased in job listing early last year. Hopefully its plans will become a little clearer in June.
