Blizzard Cancels Starcraft FPS for Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4

So here’s a swatch of bad news that happens to also kind of be good news, depending on what kind of Blizzard fan you are.

Now, Blizzard is known for many things, but consistent release schedules is certainly not one of them: typically they’ll release a critically praised game, do a victory lap for a couple/dozen of years, then release a sequel and do the exact same thing. Sometimes they surprise us with a new IP but mostly that’s been the method to their madness since the days of Warcraft.

So when news breaks that two new games are currently in the works? That’s good! But when it comes to us via a report that another Starcraft spin-off has been shut down, well… that’s less good.

Yes, following after the cancelation of Starcraft: Ghost, it’s been reported by insiders that Blizzard has canceled an unannounced Starcraft FPS, moving people around so they can put more energy and money into Diablo 4 and Overwatch 2.

The game itself – which had been prototyped at this stage – saw the player taking the role of a Terran marine gunning down Zerg aliens, although apparently there was a plan to make the Zergs playable as well. One source said development was slow, but others still emphasized that it was a big shock when the project was shut down… although relieved to find out this didn’t lead to any more layoffs.

Anyway, in an unusual twist for these kinds of stories, Blizzard actually commented to Kotaku regarding the leaks:

"We always have people working on different ideas behind the scenes – including on multiple projects right now – but the reason we tend not to discuss them publicly is because anything can happen over the course of development. As has been the case at Blizzard numerous times in the past, there is always the possibility that we’ll make the decision to not move forward on a given project. Announcing something before we feel it’s ready stands the risk of creating a lot of frustration and disappointment, both for our players and us, not to mention distraction and added pressure for our development teams.

… Knowing that changes or disappointments can happen doesn’t make it any less painful when we have to shelve a project or when an announcement doesn’t go as planned.”

 
Fair enough. While fans will no doubt be disappointed that Starcraft continues to be largely ignored by Blizzard, I’m sure the news that an actual Diablo 4 is in the works will bring delight to fans who were more than a little disappointed at the announcement of the mobile spin-off thing. And an Overwatch 2? That ain’t bad. Probably.

But we’re still probably a long ways from hearing about those.