by JR Cook - 1 month ago     show comments

Here’s what happened in Blizzard gaming this week: WoW esports heads into championship weekend, a big name leaves for Riot, Diablo IV makes Mythics more accessible, Overwatch fans get hope for an animated series, and Hearthstone preps both a tournament and an expansion that breaks its own rules.

World of Warcraft

AWC and MDI Season 1 Finals Kick Off June 5 With BlizzCon Spots on the Line

The first competitive season of Midnight comes to a head this week as the Arena World Championship and Mythic Dungeon International finals run back-to-back through June 14. BlizzCon qualification is on the line, so expect the world’s best PvP teams and dungeon runners to bring everything they’ve got.

Brian Holinka Leaves Blizzard to Join Riot’s League of Legends MMO

Brian Holinka, the longtime WoW PvP designer who shaped arena combat for over a decade, is the latest senior developer to jump ship to Riot’s still-in-development League of Legends MMO. It’s a significant loss for Blizzard and another sign that Riot’s project is pulling serious talent from the genre it’s trying to challenge.

Diablo IV

Diablo IV Season 7 Lets You Upgrade Uniques to Mythics

Season 7 is introducing a system that lets you upgrade Unique items into Mythic rarity, which fundamentally changes how accessible endgame power is for players who can’t farm for hundreds of hours. This is a huge quality-of-life win for casual players who want to experience the best gear without needing streamer-level time investment.

Overwatch

Overwatch Hires Dragon Prince Director, Sparking Animated Series Hopes

Justin Richmond, creative director on Netflix’s The Dragon Prince, just joined the Overwatch team in a creative role—and fans are immediately connecting the dots to an animated series. Given Overwatch’s history of knockout cinematics and Richmond’s storytelling chops, it’s hard not to get excited about what this could mean.

Hearthstone

Escape from Violet Hold Launches July 7 with Rule-Breaking Mechanics

Hearthstone’s next expansion throws out the rulebook—literally. Escape from Violet Hold introduces mechanics that break core game rules like running duplicate legendaries and drawing two cards per turn. It’s one of the most experimental expansions the team has ever designed, and the meta is about to get wild.

Hearthstone Spring Championship Starts June 5 with $50K Prize Pool

Sixteen of Hearthstone’s best competitors battle it out this weekend for $50,000 and three spots in the 2026 World Championship. The tournament runs June 5-7 with a 4-deck Conquest format, so expect high-level play and plenty of meta mind games.

That’s the week in Blizzard gaming. Head to blizzpro.com for full coverage on all of these stories, and we’ll catch you next week with whatever chaos the community cooks up next.