After careful consideration over the last year, we at Blizzard have made the decision not to hold BlizzCon in 2024. This decision was not made lightly as BlizzCon remains a very special event for all of us, and we know many of you look forward to it. While we're approaching this year differently and as we have explored different event formats in the past, rest assured that we are just as excited as ever to bring BlizzCon back in future years.

Over the next few months, we'll be sharing more details about our launches coming later this year, including World of Warcraft: The War Within and Diablo IV's first expansion, Vessel of Hatred. To celebrate these upcoming releases and to bring our communities together in new and special ways, we will soon share some exciting plans for other industry trade shows and conventions like Gamescom. We can't wait to tell you more about those plans soon. We're also looking forward to the Overwatch Champions Series' stops at both Dreamhack Dallas and Dreamhack Stockholm. And we're thrilled to be planning multiple, global, in-person events to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Warcraft, which will be held in addition to the in-game celebrations across our Warcraft games throughout 2024. While these events are distinct from BlizzCon, we're harnessing all of our creativity and imagination to ensure that they carry the same spirit of celebration and togetherness.

Blizzard at this year's BlizzCon 2019 in Anaheim, California formally announced Diablo IV to the world, building on the 2012-released Diablo III as promised, after the company announced a refocus on its existing franchises. According to Blizzard, the game's premise stands as "Diablo IV takes place many years after the events of Diablo III, after millions have been slaughtered by the actions of the High Heavens and Burning Hells alike. In the vacuum of power, a legendary name resurfaces."

Blizzard claimed Diablo IV would have darker, grittier overtones such as in the earlier entries in the franchise, a style that was left somewhat in the background for Diablo III. There will be more blood, there will be more gore, and for now, three classes have been announced that will be your avatars in partaking in violence on Diablo IV: the barbarian, sorceress, and druid. Blizzard has also said some words regarding a technological push in the game, claiming that "This technology is at the heart of everything players will see, hear, and feel — delivering much higher fidelity and a more engrossing experience." No details on what exactly this meant were shared by the company, though. Chek out the reveal and gameplay trailers after the break.

It's not Warcraft 4, but this news is still better than nothing to fans of the beloved RTS series. At Blizzcon 2018, Blizzard was met with backlash at the announcement of Diablo for mobile platforms, but news of Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos getting a full remaster on the PC is helping fan down some of those flames. Titled Warcraft III: Reforged, the remaster is due to be released some time in 2019.

Starting from July 1, 2009 to August 1, 2009 anyone in US, Canada, Europe, the Middle East and Africa who has purchased a GeForce 9600 GT, GeForce 9800 GT, GeForce 9800 GTX+ or GeForce GTS 250 (qualifying cards depend on region) can enter in NVIDIA's latest contest which gives two prizes. The winner of the contest will have the chance to win an all expenses paid trip to Blizzcon 2009 for him and a friend of his, valued up to $2400 USD. NVIDIA will also give the winner a free digital download of the complete World of Warcraft Classic. This download includes a full install of the complete retail version of the game with unrestricted 30-day access to character classes, cities, quests, chat, and other features from World of Warcraft Classic. The NVIDIA World of Warcraft bundle and code promotion will begin at 12:01 a.m. PST on July 1, 2009 and will end at 11:59:59 p.m. PST on August 1, 2009. For more information, please refer to the full contest details.

This story is less hardware important, but still the word Blizzard is mentioned, so I'm sure you'll make it count. Blizzard Entertainment is glad to inform its admirers that tickets for the game developer's fourth BlizzCon gaming convention are now on sale. Tickets are priced at USD $125 each and can be purchased through the company's event website here. BlizzCon is a celebration of the global player communities surrounding Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo game universes. The event will take place August 21st and 22nd at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, and will feature an array of activities, including developer panels, contests, tournaments, hands-on gameplay with upcoming Blizzard Entertainment games, and more. The ticket-purchase process uses the online Blizzard Store and requires an active Battle.net account. For those of you that won't be able to make it to BlizzCon, Blizzard will offer the DIRECTV BlizzCon Pay Per View service for $39.95. A minimum of eight hours of live HD coverage from the show floor on each day of the convention, including exclusive interviews, demos, and more will be captured and streamed to DIRECTV subscribers. All they need is to watch and enjoy the show from their PCs. Find more information at BlizzCon.

Blizzard Entertainment today announced plans for its third BlizzCon gaming convention, to be held at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California on October 10 and 11. BlizzCon is a celebration of the global player communities surrounding Blizzard Entertainment's Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo franchises. In response to the demand to accommodate more attendees, this year's event has expanded from two convention halls to three.