Rumor: Blizzard Canceled A StarCraft FPS To Focus On Overwatch 2 And Diablo 4

It’s that time of year for leaks and rumors with E3 around the corner, but the latest one surrounding Blizzard might not be revealed until BlizzCon 2019 this November, with rumored titles being Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4. [Thanks, Kotaku.]

According to three sources of Kotaku who are familiar with the matter, Blizzard has reportedly canceled a StarCraft first-person shooter, which had been in development for the past two years, in order to put more resources into the Diablo and Overwatch franchises.

The StarCraft game, which was codenamed “Ares,” was described as a Battlefield in the StarCraft universe. The prototype is said to have featured a playable Terran marine who could gun down Zer aliens, with plans to experiment with playable Zergs in the shooter. One source said the development progress was seemingly slow, while another said it came as “a massive shock” after its cancellation a couple weeks ago. A third source said the project was  “looking quite good.”

No staff members were laid off by Blizzard as a result of Ares’ cancellation along with a second unannounced mobile project. The company is looking to instead focus on the upcoming Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4, two major titles that are expected to be announced at BlizzCon 2019 which takes place this November.

It should go without saying that it’s always best to take these kinds of rumors with a grain of salt, but for what it’s worth, Overwatch 2 (official title TBA) will have a large PvE element according staff from Blizzard compared to Left 4 Dead. As for Diablo 4, it is codenamed Fenris, and has been rumored since last November.