Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 Delayed until 2023

Overwatch 2 and Diablo 4 have been delayed, Blizzard Entertainment announced Tuesday, and are unlikely to be released until 2023 at the earliest, based on comments made during an Activision Blizzard investor presentation.

“While we are still planning to deliver a substantial amount of content from Blizzard next year, we are now planning for a later launch for Overwatch 2 and Diablo IV than originally envisaged,” Activision Blizzard said Tuesday. “These are two of the most eagerly anticipated titles in the industry, and our teams have made great strides towards completion in recent quarters. But we believe giving the teams some extra time to complete production and continue growing their creative resources to support the titles after launch will ensure that these releases delight and engage their communities for many years into the future.”

Both games were originally unveiled at BlizzCon 2019, and Overwatch 2 was widely expected to arrive sometime in 2022.

Overwatch fans will get a preview of sorts of Overwatch 2’s new game rules next spring, when the Overwatch League will run on an “early build” of the sequel’s new 5v5 competitive multiplayer mode.

Diablo enthusiasts, recently got a remastered version of the second game in the series in the form of Diablo 2: Resurrected. Blizzard Entertainment is also working on a mobile spinoff called Diablo Immortal, "don't you have phones?" which recently went into closed beta testing on Android in Canada, Australia, South Korea, Japan, and China.

In its delay announcement, Activision Blizzard cited working “with new leadership in Blizzard,” and within the Diablo and Overwatch franchises, as contributors to the delays.