BlizzCon is an annual event that has been actively bringing Blizzard fans together for the past 15 years, but things will be different in 2021. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Blizzard thought that it would be best if BlizzCon were hosted online, and the price to attend the online event has been revealed.
Tickets for the last BlizzCon cost around $199, effectively restricting attendance to those who could afford the cost of reaching the event as well as the price of the ticket. Interested attendees could also buy an online ticket for past Blizzcon events at around $50 a piece, giving gamers at home access to all the video presentations. However, BlizzCon Online, otherwise known as BlizzConline, will be a free event to watch online, giving players everywhere a chance to attend BlizzCon 2021.
Making the event free was a necessary step to bring as many Blizzard fans and gamers as possible to BlizzConline. J. Allen Brack, President of Blizzard Entertainment, said that he wanted BlizzConline to be a big virtual celebration to bring in as many people as possible who have been disconnected due to quarantining during this ongoing pandemic. Brack further goes on to say that video games have kept many gamers connected during these difficult times, which is likely what inspired the company to make BlizzConline free to attend. Blizzard wants to keep gamers connected through its games and its online event.
Having a free price tag will surely help bring many people to BlizzConline. It also gives those who have been interested in attending BlizzCon in the past an opportunity to check out the event at no cost to them in the comfort of their own homes. This could bring new people to the in-person BlizzCon events when it becomes safe to host those events again.
Other major gaming events like GDC have also decided to move their events online as well. Some events like GDC will still have tickets that will go on sale, meaning that attendees will have to pay a price to stay at home and watch an event at their own computers. GDC has been known in part for its steep attendance prices, so attendees to the hybrid online and offline event will have to likely pay a similar price to attend and learn from developers from all over the industry.
Thanks to the fact that BlizzConline is completely free to attend, interested gamers can get the latest information about Diablo 4 and other upcoming Blizzard games like Overwatch 2. Fan participation will also happen at BlizzConline when the March of the Murlocs will go virtual by having fans submit their own footage of their Murloc designs. Blizzard is aiming to have BlizzConline to be as similar to an offline BlizzCon event as possible.
BlizzConline will happen on February 19-20, 2021.