Blizzard aims to release 'one or two big things' per year, president says

Blizzard president Johanna Faries says that the goal is to have the studio release 1-2 big games and/or content expansion drops throughout any given year.

Blizzard aims to release 'one or two big things' per year, president says
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Senior Gaming Editor
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TL;DR: Blizzard Entertainment plans to release one to two major digital products annually, including full games, expansions, or updates, aiming for a predictable content cadence. This strategy leverages iconic franchises like Diablo and World of Warcraft to sustain growth and maintain player engagement in a competitive gaming market.

Gamers now have an idea of what to expect from Blizzard Entertainment as management outlines plans to launch one or two big pieces of content per year, whether it be a fully-fledged game or an expansion update.

Blizzard aims to release 'one or two big things' per year, president says 4
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Two years after Microsoft took the reins, Blizzard is moving to a more predictable cadence of games and content. Blizzard is known for taking multiple years in between big releases and primarily subsisted off of expansions, content updates, and microtransactions. In 2022, the devs released Diablo Immortal, spiking Activision's mobile earnings to all-time highs, and then enjoyed megaton sales with Diablo IV a year later, which has made over $1 billion in revenue.

So what's next for Blizzard? In a recent interview with Bloomberg, Blizzard president Johanna Faries outlines a basic business model that sees the company launching 1-2 digital products a year. There's just one catch: That doesn't mean just full games or sequels, and expansions like Lord of Hatred and World of Warcraft's new Midnight expansion also count.

When asked how often Blizzard will release games, Faries said:

"I really think about this in five-year terms. Let's say I'm in the second leg of that race right now. We have iconic IP and in many ways it still has a lot of room to scale, so let's focus in on the cards we have to play. It doesn't mean we won't go into new places and territories, but for right now, let's home in on all the iconic stature that we have in the tank for Blizzard. That's number one.

"Let's look at it as a portfolio, and let's make sure that every - let's say calendar year - there are at least one to two really big things that Blizzard is pumping out.

"And if we can configure our slate accordingly, which we believe we have done, we'll be able to stay top of mind leveraging the multi-franchise opportunities that we have."

Faries' game plan is a predictable one that looks a lot like what ZeniMax is doing with its core franchises, especially The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, both of which have online MMORPG experiences that get regular yearly updates. Bethesda has also re-released its core games multiple times, with the recent launch of Oblivion remastered and Fallout 4 Anniversary Edition this year.