Blizzard doesn’t roll out a new game too often, but when the studio does? It’s usually a cause for celebration (unless it’s a mobile game heyoh). This is a company whose house was built on a foundation of three big games: WarCraft, StarCraft and Diablo. While Overwatch would pop up years later, Blizzard is still very much defined by its tentpole franchises which hover between the genre realms of sci-fi and fantasy.
They’ve seen some great spin-offs over the years as well! Hearthstone made card games cool again, while Heroes of the Storm was an interesting attempt to create the mother of all team-ups in a MOBA style experience. You could very easily spin those core franchises into new genres, something which Blizzard has contemplated and even dedicated resources to. Sometimes though, ideas for new games over at the big B just don’t work, leading to a whole lot of work and very little to show for all of that effort.
Sources over at Kotaku have reported have detailed one such instance, of a StarCraft first-person shooter that was in development over the two years and was shaping up nicely according to insiders. Developed under the codename of Ares, this project was described as “like Battlefield in the StarCraft universe” by the Kotaku source, an action game where players could pop into Terran marine armour and go looking for a Zerg fight.
There was even an idea to have players inhabit the crawling flesh of the Zerg at one point, but that development came to a sudden end when Blizzard puled the plug and decided to dedicate its resources towards Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2 instead. If all of this sounds familiar, that’s because your PTSD over the cancellation of StarCraft: Ghost in 2006 is flaring up again.
You can’t blame Blizzard though for wanting to focus on what works for the company. A first-person shooter would likely be risky to throw support behind for years to come in much the same manner that other Blizzard games benefit from, while kicking off BlizzCon this year with sequels to two of the biggest franchises that the company has to offer would most likely win back many many fans after the Diablo Immortal snafu from last year. What, don’t you guys have phones?
Last Updated: June 7, 2019
G8crasha
June 7, 2019 at 07:56
I would like to see their skills reflected in other genres, and new IPs. I would like to believe that if they are so skilled with developing games, why would that skill not help translate into other genres. Although, I suppose Bethesda is a good example of a developer that seemed to have the capacity to make any game gold, but with their last few attempts at some titles, gamers are questioning their abilities. I would hate to see that happening to Blizzard. They must just give us another Warcraft RTS!
The D
June 7, 2019 at 08:09
Where’s my StarCart racing game Bobby Blizzard?
For the Emperor!
June 7, 2019 at 09:19
Another Warcraft RTS yes! Also, I can really imagine some kind of single player RPG coming from them! Why not make this: Single Player RPG with a proper Blizzard story, with the Battlefield type multiplayer as an additional ad-on? It is because they also want this “continuous revenue stream” and don’t care about a proper, good, contained game anymore 🙁
Guz
June 7, 2019 at 09:55
Didn’t you hear, SP is dead…..there is only GaaS now, it’s what the gamers want
For the Emperor!
June 7, 2019 at 11:27
No, I absolutely did not hEAr that ever before 😛
Admiral Chief
June 7, 2019 at 08:50
Ok, hear me out. I think I got it:
– 3 way faction battle on different terrains (Like Planetside 2)
For the Emperor!
June 7, 2019 at 09:19
In other news – Baldurs Gate 3 anounced! They counted past 2! Take THAT Valve!
Guz
June 7, 2019 at 09:55
This makes me super super happy!
Guz
June 7, 2019 at 10:02
Man I really wanted to play StarCraft: Ghost, well at least I got to read the novels which were awesome
Original Heretic
June 7, 2019 at 07:48
Why didn’t they just NOT tell us about this StarCraft FPS?! Cause now I want it.
For the Emperor!
June 7, 2019 at 09:27
Yes! Why tell us about cancelling what we want so shortly after asking if we don’t have mobile phones? Same thing with “leaking” that AB was available…
Original Heretic
June 7, 2019 at 09:27
Dude, I heard a while back already (via some “inside” sources) that AB had made himself available. But they didn’t like his terms, he wasn’t willing to budge either, hence, here we are.
For the Emperor!
June 7, 2019 at 09:40
Yeah, he wanted to coin it overseas, they wanted him playing for SA in the last two ODI series and/or play domestically. He opted for the money. Something like that. But honestly, with most of the rest of the team playing shite, would he make a difference? I think not.
Original Heretic
June 7, 2019 at 12:14
I think his mere presence would have calmed the guys down. When you trust your batting partner, you play quite differently.