IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The most epic family reunion on the planet is just a month away! BlizzCon® 2019 kicks off on November 1, when the Blizzard community around the world will come together in person, in-game, and online for two days of games, esports, cosplay, contests, fellowship, and fun. Everyone’s invited to join the celebration from home, with more of this year’s main stage content available to watch live online for free than ever before—but anyone who wants to take their BlizzCon home experience to the next level can order the BlizzCon 2019 Virtual Ticket, available to purchase now in the Blizzard Shop.
The BlizzCon 2019 Virtual Ticket ($49.99) comes with a collection of commemorative extras to help players get into the convention spirit in-game, including items for World of Warcraft®, Overwatch®, Hearthstone®, StarCraft® II, Heroes of the Storm®, and Diablo® III, plus more to-be-revealed surprises. The Virtual Ticket also unlocks access to in-depth, comprehensive live coverage of the show, including the BlizzCon All-Access Channel, the Community Night contests on Friday, the closing festivities (featuring to-be-announced musical performances), and three stages’ worth of developer panels that take players further inside their favorite games.
“This year’s BlizzCon is shaping up to be our best yet, and we want to make sure everyone in the Blizzard community can experience it together, whether they’re joining us in person, from home, or hanging out in-game,” said J. Allen Brack, president of Blizzard Entertainment. “We’re looking forward to delivering an epic experience for those watching our free broadcasts—which we’ll have more of than ever before—and for everyone tuning in for all of the extras provided with the Virtual Ticket.”
Epic BlizzCon Extras
This year, BlizzCon attendees and Virtual Ticket holders will receive a multiverse-spanning assortment of in-game extras to help mark the occasion alongside their friends, allies, teammates, guildmates, broodmates, and rivals:
- World of Warcraft: Ride the tides of war with a pair of murloc-ified faction leaders: Finduin (for Alliance heroes) and Gillvanas (for the Horde). Plus, bundle up for your next trip to the icy mountains with the whimsical Wendigo Woolies transmog outfit. Available in-game starting today!
- Overwatch: Commemorate 25 years of Azeroth as you fight for future Earth with a pair of Warcraft-themed legendary Overwatch skins. Prepare to seek vengeance as Illidan Genji, and call upon the (hard-)light of Elune as Tyrande Symmetra. In-game before BlizzCon!
- Hearthstone: Celebrate the excitement of BlizzCon the next time you sit down for a duel with the BlizzCon 2019 Card Back. Then prepare to claim a mysterious Golden Legendary card, to be revealed at BlizzCon. In-game after BlizzCon!*
- Heroes of the Storm: Make your mark in the Nexus with a commemorative BlizzCon spray and portrait, and ride into battle on the Celestial Deepcrawler mount. It may not look dangerous, but those claws can give you a nasty pinch . . . or wipe out all life on your planet. Available in-game starting today!
- StarCraft II: Equip a trio of Brood War®–era unit skins and portraits the next time you go into battle. Scout for a zerg ambush aboard the Classic Battlecruiser, hunt your prey with the sinewy Classic Ultralisk, and honor Tassadar’s sacrifice with the Classic Carrier. Available in-game starting today!
- …And more to come: More BlizzCon bonuses are in the works, including a pair of commemorative wings for Diablo III players (PC/Mac version only)*—stay tuned for more details on this year’s legendary haul.
Watch BlizzCon Live Online and On the Go
For those who want a maxed-out home-viewing experience with comprehensive, in-depth coverage of the convention, the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket unlocks access to a variety of premium content:
- BlizzCon All-Access Channel: The BlizzCon All-Access Channel acts as a virtual tour guide through both full days of the main event on November 1 and 2, exploring every corner of the convention and taking viewers from the main stages to the esports tournaments to exclusive interviews with Blizzard developers and more.
- In-depth Developer Panel Coverage: Select panel content from the main BlizzCon stages will be available to view free online, but the Virtual Ticket takes Blizzard players even further behind-the-scenes of their favorite games, with the most complete home coverage available—including all of the panel content on the Mythic, Legendary, and Epic stages. The full schedule will be revealed in the weeks ahead.
- Community Night: The legendary creativity of the Blizzard community takes center stage on Friday evening during Community Night, featuring the BlizzCon costume contest, talent contest, art contest, and movie contest.
- Closing Festivities: The Virtual Ticket also provides access to the musical performances during the BlizzCon closing festivities, live from multiple stages on Saturday night. Details about this year’s performances will be announced in the weeks ahead.†
BlizzCon 2019 will also feature more free streaming content than ever before, starting with the opening ceremony, scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. PDT on Friday, November 1, and including more free panel broadcasts than in previous years. In addition, esports fans will once again be able to watch all of this year’s BlizzCon esports tournaments free, including the Overwatch World Cup and the culmination of the World of Warcraft Arena World Championship, WoW® Mythic Dungeon International, Hearthstone Global Finals, and StarCraft II World Championship Series. More details on these events will be announced once the complete BlizzCon schedule is made available at a later date.
For more information on BlizzCon 2019 and the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, visit the official website at www.blizzcon.com.
*Hearthstone items and Diablo III item will be available on or before December 31, 2019.
†Replays of the BlizzCon closing festivities will be limited; for the best experience, viewers are encouraged to watch the performances live.
About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
Best known for blockbuster hits including World of Warcraft®, Hearthstone®, Overwatch®, the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® franchises, and the multi-franchise Heroes of the Storm®, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment software renowned for creating some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment’s track record includes twenty-two #1 games** and multiple Game of the Year awards. The company's online gaming service, Battle.net®, is one of the largest in the world, with millions of active players.
**Sales and/or downloads, based on internal company records and reports from key distributors.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Blizzard Entertainment's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future, including statements about plans for BlizzCon 2019 and features and functionality of the BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could cause Blizzard Entertainment's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include unanticipated product delays and other factors identified in the risk factors sections of Activision Blizzard’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Blizzard Entertainment and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Blizzard Entertainment nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Blizzard Entertainment or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.
