The esports scene might soon see the departure of an entry developed by Blizzard Entertainment. It seems that Heroes of the Storm is standing on unstable ground as the game studio is making some changes. According to the sources, it is shifting its resources and focusing on new content for other existing titles. There is speculation that a new project might be on the way and some fans are supposedly excited.
Featuring characters from various popular titles in its vast catalog, the MOBA was targeting fans of these franchises. Protagonists and villains from games such as Diablo, Warcraft, Overwatch, and StarCraft are available from the roster. Unfortunately, the company is making a major decision to distribute the staff around, according to Polygon.
J. Allan Brack alongside Ray Gresko, Blizzard's president and chief development officer respectively, issued a statement regarding the move. Both consider it a "difficult decision" and want to be transparent about the future of Heroes of the Storm, which will somehow affect the MOBA's cadence of updates. On the other hand, it was noted that in the past, the game studio encountered similar situations wherein staff were spread across varying projects. Additionally, this implies that the esports side will be affected as well.
The developers assured fans that it does not necessarily mean the eventual cancellation of the game, but new DLC and in-game events will noticeably be at a slower pace from here on. Nevertheless, professional players of the title will be upset to learn about something equally important. The company is canceling two tournaments next year. "Heroes Global Championship and Heroes of the Dorm will not return in 2019," confirmed Blizzard.
Compared to other AAA titles in Blizzard's catalog, Eurogamer points out that the MOBA failed to capture a significant audience. Moreover, the genre is already populated by two of the biggest games in the market. Riot Games and Valve are enjoying the continuous success of League of Legends and DOTA respectively. Analysts highlight the impressive number of viewers that tune in to tournament broadcasts annually. In hindsight, the game studio hinted that they are working on several projects, which could be a clue that something new is on its way.
Heroes of the Storm made its debut in 2015, which was a time wherein the genre was at its peak. Meanwhile, the team that manages the official esports website extends their gratitude to all of the fans that contributed to its past success.
