It’s not actually day two of BlizzCon for me as it’s midday on Sunday here in the US. I didn’t get a chance to get my day two impressions up because it was a very long, busy day. I had a chance to speak with team members from Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, Diablo III, World of Warcraft: Warlords of Draenor and StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void. This year we were also given 30-minutes in each interview which is a lot over the industry standard of 10, and while chatting with the game-creators was busy work, I also took to the showfloor to get a rundown of the punter vibe which I can tell you up front was passionate.



Not that there’s any other vibe that really should spew forth from an event like this, but this year it was a bit more mature. Blizzard’s annual releases and overall content, is among the most consistent and bolstered in the company’s history. Its established franchises continue to age with a kind of impassioned grace that is only fed by the people who continue to live in these worlds. Last year Hearthstone was barely ‘out’ and this year it was the focus of an all-new expansion coming next month as well as a championship with hundreds of thousands of dollars up for grabs (well done Firebat for taking it out, too). Hell, there was even Overwatch cosplay that emerged and that game has only just been announced.

I suspect the eSports world will heavily embrace Overwatch, if Hearthstone is anything to go by in terms of being embraced, which will just build on that maturity I talked about.

The two entries from the Alliance vs Horde bike build-off were on show (and look spectacular I might add), while the usual merch lines, signings and general panels were being flocked too like seagulls after a single chip.

In terms of the actual games, I also got my hands on a few rounds of the Goblins vs Gnomes Hearthstone content (that excitingly threatens to shake up the Hearthstone player-scape in many ways, not least of which is 120 new cards), more Overwatch and even Heroes of the Storm (rare for me because it’s the first MOBA I’ve ever tackled and I did miserably at it). We even caught just a little bit of Metallica before deciding an IGN AU vs AusGamers Hearthstone playoff was more important. It’s hard to explain, but you get swept up in the spectacle of games at events like this, that even the mighty Metallica can’t hold your games-bolstered attention for too long. I lost, by the way, but came close a few times.



At the end of it all though, after all the panels (including the year in, year out best World of Warcraft Q&A), after all the lines, and merch and cosplay and Metallica. After all the parties and new relationships and fun. After all the fun, it was over. And just like that we’re left with another year to watch this giant company grow and mature and foster, this year with a new IP and an audience waiting with baited breath for their own future and growth alongside. BlizzCon is a rare spectacle, and one I never get tired of year after year. It humbles me and continues to bring out the core gamer in me -- the guy who’s usually too busy with life and work and often forgets why he’s here in the first place -- thank you, Blizzard and thank you, Blizzard fans.

Stay tuned for a slew of content related to all of the developer conversations I mentioned earlier, throughout the week as well as impressions and previews of everything I got my hands-on at the event.