Blizzard is back on the right track – at least that’s what MeinMMO demon Cortyn thinks. April 1st is a shining example.
Blizzard has been going through a rough patch in recent years. Not only has the trust of the fans been lost due to unpopular extensions (WoW: Shadowlands) or new, controversial titles (Diablo: Immortal), but various major crises and disgusting scandals have repeatedly caused dissatisfaction, protests or calls for boycotts.
The once probably most popular game company was on the ground and had to put up with a lot of criticism.
The “love of detail” has disappeared, the “creative minds” are gone and everything new is just “dirt”.
Blizzard can still do it – the last few months show that
But the last few months and especially today have shown me: Blizzard can still do it and developers work there who care about their projects and who understand what the players want.
I feel this most clearly in World of Warcraft with Dragonflight. 2 years ago I would never have thought it possible that Blizzard could manage to release a new patch every 2 months that actually delivers content – but so far it has succeeded. New story quests, cool rewards and significantly less “force”. ‘ Log in every day. The feel of the game has clearly shifted to “Do what you want” and is less and less “Do this or you can’t keep up”.
Even if Diablo IV doesn’t meet my interest right now, I’ve heard almost nothing but good things from participants in the beta. Reactions are positive and Diablo fans seem to be getting what they’ve been waiting for for years.
Probably the most dazzling example is Overwatch 2. Even if it clearly fell out of favor at launch – and in part justifiably – it has really blossomed in the last few months. Criticism has been taken into account, the progression system has been significantly improved and regular events lure with cool skins.
However, the April 1st event took the cake. Blizzard traditionally makes small jokes, but with Overwatch 2 a lot of effort has been made.
Almost all heroes in the Arcade have been given a makeover or enhanced abilities. Even memes from the community were taken into account.
But there are also changes that are so good that they could even stay in the game:
After just a few hours, calls are heard: “That’s just too good for an April Fool’s joke, leave it at that”.
The “smallest” joke is all the more impressive
Even more impressive – and even funnier – is the second feature that was “just” brought into play:
All characters have new voicelines for their ultimates that play randomly instead of the normal voicelines.
Again, Blizzard showed humor and showed that they understand what makes players tick and what they enjoy. Some examples:
You can see most of the new Voicelines here:
Even if it doesn’t look like “a lot” from the outside, there is a lot of work behind the ideas. Not only was the humor of the characters and the community hit quite well, but also getting all 36 voice actors in several languages together again for such a small “silly” event is quite an effort.
It’s that playful attention to small details and the effort that goes into even such silliness that I’ve associated with Blizzard for years. That and also the developments of the last few months give me hope that the once popular game developer is still “on it”.
I want more of this in all Blizzard games.