Blizzard unveils Diablo 5, Netflix animated series and StarCraft reboot at BlizzCon 2026
Blizzard Entertainment used its BlizzCon 2026 opening ceremony to announce Diablo 5, an animated Diablo series with Netflix, World of Warcraft: Forever and a StarCraft reboot, alongside a Nintendo Switch 2 release for Diablo 4.
Blizzard Entertainment has announced that Diablo 5 is in development and will launch in early 2029, set a century after the events of Diablo 4. The reveal came during the opening ceremony of BlizzCon 2026 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Los Angeles, where Blizzard president Johanna Faries introduced a slate of projects spanning the company’s major franchises.
According to Blizzard, the new instalment will place players in a Sanctuary where Diablo has already triumphed and its heroes have been defeated. The company framed the game around a central question: what must you become when the world has already fallen? A short teaser was shown during the ceremony, though no gameplay footage was presented.
The Diablo announcements extended beyond the mainline sequel. An animated series set in the world of Diablo is in development with Netflix. In a statement, Blizzard said it was partnering with creative teams to tell stories beyond gaming, adding that more details would be shared in the future and that this was only the beginning. The official Diablo social media account confirmed the project was in development.
Diablo 4 will also arrive on the Nintendo Switch 2 on 15 September, with all recent expansions included. The release brings the game to Nintendo’s new hardware for the first time and gives the franchise a presence on a portable platform alongside its existing console and PC versions.
Away from the Diablo universe, Blizzard announced World of Warcraft: Forever, a new game mode launching in November. Set during the first year of World of Warcraft, it will evolve differently from the ongoing online role-playing title. Blizzard described it as inviting past, current and new players into a familiar yet fresh Azeroth where the world takes centre stage, community comes first and the journey matters as much as the destination. An open beta is scheduled for 17 September.
The company also confirmed it is rebooting StarCraft. After two real-time strategy titles — the original 1998 game and its 2010 sequel — the new project will be an open-world, story-driven science-fiction shooter set decades after the events of StarCraft 2. A teaser on the official StarCraft website reads: «The sons and daughters of the Dominion answered the call when mankind needed them most. Their courage held the line. Their sacrifice bought us another day. Now the call comes to you. Carry their strength forward. No matter the cost.» The project remains in early development and is expected to launch in 2030.
BlizzCon 2026 also featured a headline performance from K-pop group LE SSERAFIM, who returned to close out the weekend-long event three years after their previous appearance in 2023. The ceremony combined game reveals with music, reflecting Blizzard’s efforts to position its franchises across gaming, streaming and live entertainment.
The announcements signal a broad expansion of Blizzard’s core properties. Diablo 5, the Netflix animated series and the StarCraft reboot are all in development, while World of Warcraft: Forever and the Switch 2 version of Diablo 4 are closer to release. For a company whose major franchises have long cycles between instalments, the BlizzCon presentation offered a rare simultaneous view of several projects at different stages, from an imminent port and open beta to games still years away.
