Blizzard Hiring for an Unannounced Competitive First-Person Shooter

Jobs come, jobs go. And it’s not unusual for gaming companies to be hiring, even for unknown game projects. But when Blizzard hires for unknown projects, it raises a few eyebrows. Not just because everyone loves Blizzard for some goddamn reason but also because Blizzard is not a company known for exploring with new IP’s. One of the reasons Overwatch was so hyped when it was first announced was that it was a new IP from a company more hostile to that idea than even Nintendo, so when there’s even the slightest, tiniest hint that Blizzard is working on something new, the gaming world stands at attention.

Like in most cases, this most recent clue doesn’t come to us from a PR statement or some kind of trailer or even a clue dropped from an anonymous employee; this just comes from a job posting on their website, hunting for a Senior or Principal Designer for an “unknown project.”.And while we know nothing about this project (hence the ‘unknown’ bit), we at least know it’s going to be a competitive first-person shooter.

"As a Senior or Principal Designer, you’ll work with numerous departments to shape the core gameplay experience for this unannounced project by defining the abilities, powers, and weapons our players will use. The ideal candidate will design and implement great game experiences while helping to foster a creative and energetic environment. You have proven experience in game design, a strong aptitude for critical thinking and analysis, outstanding people skills, boundless creativity, and extensive knowledge and passion for competitive first-person shooter games."

Again, we have no idea what this might be officially, but I have an idea: it’s probably an Overwatch-themed battle royale game. And I don’t just say that because everyone is making Battle Royale games, but also because earlier this month Overwatch’s current director admitted he was very interested in making a Battle Royale game.

So that’s looking likely, but heck, I could be wrong. In fact, in this case, I really, really hope I am.

I’m so done with this genre, guys.