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BlizzCon 2021 schedule confirms “deep dives” on Diablo and WoW, but not Overwatch 2

Here's what to expect from BlizzCon 2021

The BlizzCon 2021 schedule is here to give us a much better idea of what Blizzard will actually be showing during the event. As previously announced, day one will give us a load of time with the studio’s upcoming PC games, including the long-awaited next entries in the Diablo and Overwatch lineages. But when it comes to new stuff, it looks like the focus isn’t going to be on Overwatch 2.

The opening ceremony kicks off at 2:00 PM PST / 5:00 PM EST / 10:00 PM GMT on February 19, and is scheduled to last for one hour and ten minutes. “Join us for the start of BlizzConline, and discover the latest from Blizzard Entertainment,” the company says on the schedule. “No spoilers here, so you’re going to want to catch it live!”

Immediately following the opening, BlizzCon will split into six separate streams – a main broadcast featuring highlights and replays, and five other streams focused on World of Warcraft. Hearthstone, Diablo, Overwatch, and, er, ‘strategy’. Yeah, StarCraft doesn’t even get its own name here, though there will be a lengthy exhibition featuring StarCraft pros.

World of Warcraft will have both a ‘What’s Next’ and ‘Deep Dive’ panel, featuring highlights of upcoming content and a more in-depth exploration of what’s coming with the developers. The What’s Next panel is getting prime positioning on the schedule, and since it’s way too early for a new expansion reveal on WoW proper, I’d speculate that hope is alive for a Burning Crusade reveal for WoW Classic.

Diablo is also getting a What’s Next, Deep Dive, and Developer Roundtable panel on day one, by far the biggest selection of development-focused broadcasts on the schedule. Expect plenty of info on Diablo 4 (fingers crossed for a Diablo 4 release date), though I dare not even hope for that long-rumoured Diablo 2 remake to appear.

Curiously, Overwatch 2 isn’t getting the What’s Next or Deep Dive treatment – instead, we’re just getting a ‘Behind the Scenes of Overwatch 2’ panel. On day two, every other highlighted title – WoW, Hearthstone, and Diablo – is getting a Q&A session with developers, but not Overwatch. Blizzard has previously hinted that the Overwatch 2 release date is still a long way away, and it looks like while we’ll definitely get some Overwatch 2 morsels at BlizzCon, it will not be a big focus at the show.

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We’ll know for sure when the BlizzCon 2021 dates hit on February 19 and 20.