While the Blizzard’s BlizzCon 2019 opening ceremony featured plenty of surprises for fans of the studio’s many properties, some of the biggest reveals were actually spoiled ahead of time. Leaks had been coming fast and furious in the days leading up to BlizzCon, revealing major unveils like Overwatch 2, Diablo 4, and more.
As one might expect, the Overwatch 2 leaks were hard for the Blizzard development team to deal with. When speaking to Kotaku Australia, Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan acknowledged that the leaks were “extremely demoralizing” for the team.
Kaplan didn’t mince words when expressing his frustration, explaining that he was like Sylvanas and his phone was the Lich King’s helmet from the new World of Warcraft: Shadowlands trailer. For those that might not have seen it, Sylvanas rips the helmet into pieces with her bare hands.
"That's the part that bothers us the most, where people are not given all the information and all of the context that they need to understand what we're doing."
While we doubt that Kaplan’s anger ripped a portal to the underworld, it’s easy to see his frustration regarding the Overwatch 2 leaks. From new character Sojourn to a PvE component to redesigns for some of the main Overwatch heroes, there wasn’t a lot about Overwatch 2 that wasn’t known ahead of time. Some even doubted the leaks because they were so complete and few could imagine that Blizzard would actually announce a sequel to Overwatch when the goal seemed to be to build on the first game as a platform like World of Warcraft or Hearthstone. And as a result, what would have been an unexpected reveal – a sequel to a game that seemed to still going strong – was spoiled.
At the same time, Kaplan does acknowledge that leaks only really have an effect on the development team. He cites the Burning Crusade leaks before the World of Wacraft expansion was announced at BlizzCon and how few (if any) fans remember that leak. All those players remember is that Burning Crusade was one of the more popular World of Warcraft add-ons.
So while Overwatch 2 might not have been kept a secret for as long as Blizzard would have liked, the announcement is only one part of the equation. If the game can deliver what Blizzard plans – an experience that combines Overwatch 1 with a more Destiny-like experience – then few will care that the reveal was spoiled. Still, it’s always a bummer for teams that have been working so hard on a product to not be able to reveal it on their own terms.
Overwatch 2 does not have a release date.
Source: Kotaku