With Blizzard currently working on Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4, it’s probably wise to keep hype for a “StarCraft 3” very much in check for the foreseeable future.
We’re eternally grateful for your ongoing support, and we’ll keep you updated on any and all plans we have for future voyages into the Koprulu Sector. You are one of the most passionate, creative, and dedicated communities in all of gaming. StarCraft teaches us that that process of improvement can be a reward in itself, and it’s certainly taught us a lot at Blizzard over the years. To become better, you have to look inward, be honest about any flaws, and dedicate yourself to improving. The outcome of each match is in your hands 100%. StarCraft is core to Blizzard, and we’ve learned that it’s a game that can change the lives of people who devote themselves to it, whether as a player, content creator, streamer, or member of the community (or developer).
We know some of our players have been looking forward to some of the things we’re moving away from, but the good news is this change will free us up to think about what’s next, not just with regard to StarCraft II, but for the StarCraft universe as a whole. What’s particularly interesting about Bridenbecker’s note is that there is a mention of the future of StarCraft beyond StarCraft 2, something fans haven’t really heard anything about, well, ever pretty much. In other words, StarCraft 2 isn’t going anywhere, or getting put out to pasture, but it’s best for fans to temper their expectations when it comes to large new content ever being added again to the decade old game. That said, StarCraft 2 esports are still set up ESL through the next three years with total prize pools still hitting nearly $2 million for each year. At some point development was going to need to wind down and ten years of service is a good run.
While the news is probably disappointing to current players, StarCraft II is now over ten years old if you can believe it. In the case of StarCraft II, while there won’t be any paid DLC, developers will still monitor balance and bugs and make changes if needed. This includes paid co-op commanders, War Chests containing skins and other cosmetic content, announcers, and larger DLC such as Nova Ops.Īccording to the post written by Blizzard VP Rob Bridenbecker, StarCraft 2 will now be supported like other “longstanding games” such as StarCraft: Brood War.
Speaking of big prizes – in addition to the already sizeable winnings available, there is also going to be an additional war chest released later this year to raise the stakes at the grand finals, so stay tuned for more news on that.Blizzard has announced that paid-content for StarCraft 2 will be coming to an end. Throughout all of these competitions, players will do their best to accumulate enough points in order to move into the finals and compete for the big prizes. At each of them, WCS points will be distributed (the parallel event to this in Korea is the Global StarCraft League) and then there are also two global events, IEM Katowice and GSL vs. Overall, there will be four Circuit competitions – WCS Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall. Between ten and $120.000, each of the stages will help narrow down who will get to compete in the final. Being focused especially on Korea, the tournament plan will have 8 Koreans facing off against 8 players from the Circuit for a final prize of half a million dollars – these players will be determined in several pre-stages with some pretty impressive prize money all of their own.