Published on: 07/02/2022
Activision Blizzard to launch Warcraft Mobile in 2022
Activision Blizzard is planning on releasing a mobile version of their popular MMORPG, World of Warcraft, sometime this year.
The news came out from Blizzard’s fourth quarter 2021 financial report which reveals that more Warcraft content and the franchise’s mobile version are set to launch this year.
Warcraft Mobile so far
Any mentions about Warcraft mobile on the company’s report are only as follows:
“Blizzard is planning substantial new content for the Warcraft franchise in 2022, including new experiences in World of Warcraft and Hearthstone, and getting all-new mobile Warcraft content into players’ hands for the first time.”
Rumors about Warcraft mobile can be traced back as far as 2017, only a year after Activision merged with Blizzard through an US$18.9 billion dollar deal. Big gaming studios and publishing reportedly had tried to tap into the growing $85 billion mobile gaming market and there is no way Activision Blizzard will miss out on such an opportunity.
According to a World Economic Forum report, many gaming studios and publishing had tried to make an entrance into the mobile market. Microsoft led the movement by launching its online gaming platform services in 2001 amid the Online Boom. 13 years later, major gaming acquisitions and development took place, from Activision Blizzard and more.
A year ago, company CEO Bobby Kotick, on a financial earning call, spoke to investors that the developers had been working out for “multiple, mobile, free-to-play Warcraft experiences” which happened to be in an advanced development since then. Confirming that the studio has been working for the franchise entrance to the mobile market.
“And we’ve made multiple, mobile, free-to-play Warcraft experiences and they’re now in advanced development based on our franchise’s beloved IP,” Kotick said to investors.
While Blizzard is yet to confirm and provide further details about the issue, their stance on providing more Warcraft content is to please their investors and fans, seeing from what Kotick said last year.
“In our Warcraft franchise, we intend to deliver more frequent premium content to sustain and expand the World of Warcraft community,” Kotick added.
As said previously, details surrounding the game such as the genre, timeline, and any specific elements it will feature when compared to its PC counterpart have yet to be confirmed.
Regardless, the news is still great news for MMORPG fans. Adding to Warcraft mobile, Diablo: Immortal Mobile is also planned for the 2022 release window.
About World of Warcraft
Additionally, for those who might not be familiar with World of Warcraft or the whole series–Warcraft is a massive MMORPG game based on the Warcraft series developed by Blizzard Entertainment released back in 2004.
World of Warcraft had critical and commercial mainstream success following its release in 2004. The game became the most popular MMORPG and one of the highest-grossing video games. Many had also praised the game’s long lifespan. Since then, the developers had launched many contents and expansion packs to support its longevity.
Whether the franchise’s mobile version will have the same success story remains a question. What is not a question, however, is the studio’s proven track record of MMORPG and its craft within the gaming industry.
