Blizzard is releasing their games on Steam

[ADL]

As Blizzard evolves as a studio, inside and out, one of the ideas pushing us forward is meeting players around the world where they are and making our games as easy as possible to access and play. We want to give everyone a chance to experience our universes with old friends while making new ones, no matter how they choose to play.

Battle.net is the home of all our PC players, and over the years, we've evolved our platform to support updated technologies, capabilities, and our communities' expectations. But as we've evolved, the industry has evolved too–gaming is no longer just for specific communities as it was when Battle.net launched over two decades ago, gaming is for everyone–and though we remain committed to continually investing in and supporting Battle.net, we want to break down the barriers to make it easier for players everywhere to find and enjoy our games.
Which is why we're trying something new.

We're excited to announce that we are bringing a selection of our games to Steam, starting with Overwatch 2… which will be available on the platform on August 10!

"It's our goal at Blizzard to listen to players and try to exceed their expectations in everything we do," said Mike Ybarra, President of Blizzard Entertainment.

"While Battle.net remains a priority for us now and into the future, we've heard players want the choice of Steam for a selection of our games, starting with Overwatch 2 on August 10th. We're happy to work with Valve to make that happen."

"Gamers and developers are both going to benefit from Overwatch 2 coming to Steam," said Gabe Newell, Valve's president. "Gamers will have another platform where they can play a beloved game that utilizes the capabilities of Steam, and developers will benefit from the effects of having the talented team at Blizzard helping us evolve our supported features and functionality for Overwatch 2."

As a free-to-play, team-based game, we believe Overwatch 2 is the perfect title for Blizzard's debut on the platform. Overwatch 2: Invasion is launching with more new types of gameplay experiences than at any point in the game's storied 7-year history, including the first-ever set of PvE Story Missions, a new core PvP game mode with two new maps, and of course, a new hero. It's a great opportunity for new players to enjoy their first experience of the Overwatch universe.

Overwatch 2's presence on Steam is in addition to Battle.net, so the incredible community already accessing the game through Battle.net can play as they have with no changes required. Players on Steam will still need to connect Overwatch 2 to a Battle.net account, as we require for all platforms, which enables cross-platform play and more. Players using Steam will have access to features of the platform while playing Overwatch 2, such as Steam achievements, their Steam friends list, and the ability to invite them to play in-game. We're excited to see the response from the Overwatch community–both veteran players and new ones who come on board through Steam–and we're looking forward to hearing their feedback.

As far as what's next for Blizzard on Steam, we'll be sharing more about potential other games coming to the platform when the time is right.

The Overwatch 2 Steam page is live now, and is available to wishlist! We invite the Overwatch community to give their new teammates playing from Steam a warm welcome on August 10!

To stay up to date with everything Blizzard, be sure to follow us on Twitter.

https://news.blizzard.com/en-us/blizzard/23982127/overwatch-2-coming-to-steam-on-august-10

 

[d1r]

Doesn't surprise me at all, after that PR disaster with Overwatch 2. They need all the players they can get.

 

[zwanzig_zwoelf]

Wake me up when they'll release a good game for a change.

 

[Tehdagah]

"Players on Steam will still need to connect Overwatch 2 to a Battle.net account"

Pointless, then.

 

[Baron Dupek]

Release Diablo 1 and 2 and give Starcraft for free

btw Ubi should release more games on Steam because it's missing a lot

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

"Players on Steam will still need to connect Overwatch 2 to a Battle.net account"

Pointless, then.

If it's just an account, I wouldn't be mad. If it also means having the launcher in the background they can suck a dick.

 

[geno]

"Players on Steam will still need to connect Overwatch 2 to a Battle.net account"

Pointless, then.

And your phone number. Don't you trust Blizzard?

 

[Lord_Potato]

Release Diablo 1 and 2 and give Starcraft for free

btw Ubi should release more games on Steam because it's missing a lot

If Microsoft buys Ubisoft, who knows?

 

[The Decline]

Release Diablo 1 and 2 and give Starcraft for free

btw Ubi should release more games on Steam because it's missing a lot

They would still force you to install and use their launcher though.

 

[Lyric Suite]

Call me when they allow me to play original Warcraft III.

 

[Zlaja]

Call me when they allow me to play original Warcraft III.

 

[karoliner]

You can run, you can hide but the decline always catches you.

 

[StippleAlpha]

They would still force you to install and use their launcher though.

Yeah, this is pointless because every Blizzard game in your steam library will just be the same link to open the Battle.net launcher.

 

[Late Bloomer]

Overwatch 2 Engagement and Player Investment Is Declining, Activision Blizzard Admits​

https://www.ign.com/articles/overwa...tment-is-declining-activision-blizzard-admits

While engagement and player investment in Overwatch 2 declined sequentially in the quarter, the Overwatch team is looking forward to the August 10 release of Overwatch 2: Invasion

 

[Merkwürdigliebe]

They must be rather desperate to increase their potential customer base if they are willing to accept sales with steams cut. However I wonder how many people this would actually add as potential customers, most people interested in their games likely already have a bnet account.

 

[duskvile]

Please Diablo 4 offline mode for single player Blizzard.

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

Overwatch exists so people can make porn of it

 

[Morgoth]

Double-Tipping for Bobby's exit package.

 

[whydoibother]

This mostly tells me that the Microsoft acquisition is going through.

 

[Dr1f7]

"Players on Steam will still need to connect Overwatch 2 to a Battle.net account"

Pointless, then.

If it's just an account, I wouldn't be mad. If it also means having the launcher in the background they can suck a dick.

of course you'll need their dumbass launcher gotta sell their hardcore classic wow resurrection tokens and promote their important "breast reduction" updates and classic wow level boosts and gold tokens

 

[Fedora Master]

Steam is already filled to the brim with shit, what difference does it make

Will still require their retarded launcher too no doubt

 

[Pika-Cthulhu]

Surely they could have squeezed timmy for an epic exclusive

 

[Baron Dupek]

 

[Joggerino]

Release Diablo 1 and 2 and give Starcraft for free

btw Ubi should release more games on Steam because it's missing a lot

They did make Starcraft free when they released the remastered version.

 

[CthuluIsSpy]

I don't give two shits about Overwatch 2, but releasing Diablo, Warcraft and Starcraft to other platforms would be nice.
I really don't like the Blizzard client or store.
GOG would be even better but I doubt Bliz would go there anytime soon.