BlizzCon is the highlight of every major Blizzard fan, and as you will all know: tomorrow is BlizzCon time!
Even thought we got to enjoy the World Cup matches this week, as well as several other Blizzard eSports events, BlizzCon will officially start tomorrow. Celebrated every year as the ultimate feast for the company and fans alike, people enjoy BlizzCon for a variety of reasons. Let's highlight all the reasons you will want to pay attention over the coming two days:
Overwatch World Cup
The very first Overwatch World Cup will be concluding in the next two days. Originally seen as a weaker alternative to an actual eSports even, competition has started to rise to the highest levels with the amount of teams dwindling. Teams such as South Korea, Sweden and USA are basically pro teams on their own, and have enjoyed a level of popularity unique to this setting: national pride.
After the Opening Week matches, we are left with the final eight teams, which will be playing through a Single-Elimination bracket over the next two days. Tune in tomorrow (starting at noon PDT/8:00 PM CET) for the Quarter- and Semi-finals, and on Saturday for the oh-so-important Finals at 11:00 AM PDT/7:00 PM CET.
Overwatch Panels
Those of you less interested in watching others play Overwatch, and more so in your own experience of the game will want to check out the Overwatch-related panels, featuring Blizzard employees from all kinds of teams. Some of these panels will be available as they happen to Virtual Ticket holders, but most are also expected to be uploaded to YouTube after a bit of delay. A total of seven panels have been scheduled:
- Overwatch - What's New
- Description: Join the Overwatch developers as they discuss the newest heroes, maps, brawls, and gameplay features in Blizzard’s team-based first-person shooter.
- Date: Friday, 1:30 PM - 2:15 PM PDT/9:30 PM - 10:15 PM CET
- Streamed: Yes
- Overwatch Art & Design
- Description: Dave Adams - Design, John Polidora - Traditional Drawing, Jesse Davis - Animation
- Date: Friday 2:30 PM - 3:30 PM PDT/10:30 PM - 11:30 PM CET
- Streamed: No
- Overwatch Animated Shorts
- Description: Blizzard’s cinematic artists share a behind-the-scenes look at how they bring some of Overwatch’s most iconic heroes to life in our animated shorts.
- Date: Friday 3:15 PM - 4:15 PM PDT/11:15 PM - 12:15 AM CET
- Streamed: Yes
- Overwatch - Play By Sound
- Description: Learn how Overwatch's sound can make you a better player. Hear about our audio design and mix philosophies, and discover how to listen for gameplay cues in music, voice, and sound effects.
- Date: Saturday 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM PDT/6:00 PM - 7:00 PM CET
- Streamed: Yes
- United Nations of Overwatch
- Description: Join us on the Voice Actor's Stage for a meeting of Overwatch minds—and voices. The international flags of Overwatch will be unfurled as we introduce you to the actors from across the globe who bring the heroes of the Overwatch universe to life.
- Date: Saturday 2:30 PM - 3:45 PM PDT/10:30 PM - 11:45 PM CET
- Streamed: No
- Overtalk
- Description: Notable Overwatch podcasters jam with the development team about the current state of the game.
- Date: Saturday 3:00 PM - 4:00 PM PDT/11:00 PM - 12:00 AM CET
- Streamed: No
- Overwatch Q&A
- Description: Team up with your fellow BlizzCon attendees and check in with the Overwatch developers. Come armed with questions for this full-length Q&A session.
- Date: Saturday 5:15 PM - 6:15 PM PDT/Sunday 1:15 AM - 2:15 AM CET
- Streamed: Yes
The Overwatch League announcement
Teased a few weeks ago by Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick, and expected to be announced during BlizzCon is the official Overwatch League that will be hosted by Blizzard. Overwatch needs official eSports support besides the World Cup, and the rumour has been for a while that Overwatch will get a full-fledged league.
Earlier today, a sheet of information was leaked that confirmed there will be a major announcement on this front on Friday:
(Click to enlarge)
We are not sure whether this presentation will be behind closed doors, but will provide you with a summary of the important details as soon as possible.
Overwatch Cosplay
Due to its rich cast of characters, Overwatch has quickly become a solid source of inspiration for cosplay and costume work. You could already notice this during Halloween a few days ago, but it will amplified even more during the annual BlizzCon Cosplay contest. This year, besides the amazing Illidan and Kerrigan costumes, you will most likely see a lot of Tracers, Reapers and even Bastions make their rounds. The costume contest is part of the 2.5 hour Contests block starting Friday 6:00 PM PDT/ Saturday 2:00 AM CET.
"Weird Al" Yankovic
During the night of Saturday to Sunday, "Weird Al" Yankovic will be taking care of the Closing Concert. The artist famous for his parodies has enough nerd-cred to be trusted with the task of giving the attendants (and Virtual Ticket holders) their final experiences and lasting memories of BlizzCon 2016. Though not Overwatch related, we still imagine this concert will be one of the major highlights for most.
Our Coverage of the event
As always, GosuGamers will have some crew members at the venue to cover BlizzCon as best as possible. Expect a whole bunch of exclusive interviews with developers, players and other personalities, as well as a general taste of what it feels like to experience BlizzCon in the flesh. Secondly, for those who won't have the time to tune in for every single second of BlizzCon we will be providing you with daily recaps so you at least won't miss the hype!
For more competitive Overwatch news, follow @GosuOverwatch.
