We're almost at the finish line - Blizzcon, Blizzard Entertainment's [generally] yearly gaming convention is right around the corner, and we've put together a bunch of information for you so you know when, where and what to expect!

Start date: Friday, November 3 10AM PDT
End date: Saturday, November 4, 7PM PDT

Now, let's break down what'll actually happen during the event, as well as how to watch it.

Watching Blizzcon Live

Blizzcon 2023 will be live-streamed for free on their Twitch account. It will also be available on their YouTube account, but we don't yet have confirmation whether live-streaming will also happen on their specific game channels on either platform.

Also important to note is that all 'arena content' will be streaming for free this year. What this refers to is a section of the Anaheim Convention Center that you can see on the handy Blizzcon map:

The Blizzcon Arena will be host to all the important stuff you've come to expect from the event - meaning, they'll all be livestreamed for free:

  • Opening Ceremony
  • All developer talk panels
  • Community Night (cosplay competition)

The Opening Ceremony

About 90% of any particular Blizzcon's hype is concentrated in the opening ceremony, a 60-90 minute panel that kicks off Blizzcon with several world premiere announcements for their games. It's where we were asked if we have phones, but generally you can expect lots of juicy CGI trailers for World of Warcraft, Overwatch and other Blizzard franchises.

The opening ceremony is the can't-miss event of the convention, so if you can't dedicate the whole weekend to watching the whole thing, at least try to catch this one. I will admit, it's been pretty hit-or-miss since 2018, but with Chris Metzen - the company's only charismatic developer - back working at Blizzard, I have high hopes this Blizzcon will be a return to form.

We don't have much to go on in terms of what to expect announced this year, but we're pretty confident we're looking at a new World of Warcraft expansion, as well as a new hero for Overwatch 2, as shown in this infographic Blizzard has released that details the sorts of [mostly in-person] activities you can expect:

The Rest of Blizzcon

Without a concrete schedule (should be announced soon), we can look at the above infographic as well as past Blizzcons to get a good idea as to what the rest of the livestreamed event will contain:

  • World of Warcraft Guild Clash & potentially other in-game competitions.
  • "What's Next" panels for all currently supported Blizzard games: World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Overwatch 2, Diablo 4. (referred to as "big games" for the rest of the article)
  • "Deep Dive" panels for all big games.
  • Voice actor panels for some of their big games.
  • "Behind the Scenes" panels that get a little more technical, likely for Diablo 4 and/or Overwatch 2.
  • Q&A panels for all their big games.

It is important to note many of these panels will likely be happening simultaneously, meaning you'll have to pick and choose which to watch live, and which to see after they've taken place and their VODs have been uploaded.

We'll share more Blizzcon news at it emerges throughout this final week, as well as several other bundles of information relating to the event. Stay tuned and let us know what you're most excited for this Blizzcon in the comments below!