BlizzCon 2026: Blizzard Announces Diablo 5 and StarCraft Open-World Shooter for 2029–2030, PlayStation 6 Availability Unconfirmed
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Blizzard has revealed further creative details about Diablo 5, confirming that former BioWare writer Jennifer Brandes Hepler, best known for her work on the Dragon Age trilogy, is serving as the game's narrative director. Speaking to Polygon at BlizzCon 2026, Hepler said her background in traditional RPG storytelling has directly shaped Diablo 5's narrative approach, particularly its emphasis on companion characters and player choice, marking a notable shift in tone for the long-running action RPG series.
Hepler, who joined Blizzard's Diablo 5 team in 2025 after leaving BioWare in 2013, said the game's caravan of companion characters draws on RPG traditions such as Baldur's Gate and Dragon Age campsites, though followers won't have levellable skills as in Dragon Age. Diablo 5 is set in a world where Diablo has already conquered the western continent, with the story centred on a caravan fighting back; the game remains on track for a spring 2029 release, alongside Blizzard's previously announced open-world StarCraft shooter due in 2030, with PlayStation 6 availability for either title still unconfirmed.
- Dragon Age writer Jennifer Hepler is Diablo 5's narrative director
- Her RPG background shapes Diablo 5's companion-character storytelling
- Diablo 5 still slated for spring 2029; PS6 release unconfirmed
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Blizzard Entertainment is a major video game studio, part of Microsoft's Activision Blizzard, best known for long-running franchises including Diablo, a dark fantasy action series, and StarCraft, a science-fiction strategy series. BlizzCon is the company's annual fan convention, where it typically reveals new games and updates on existing ones. Both franchises have large, established player bases who have followed them for decades, which makes any new instalment a significant event in the gaming world.
At the 2026 event, Blizzard revealed its next steps for both series: a fifth mainline Diablo game and a new StarCraft title that departs from the franchise's strategy roots to become an open-world shooter. These games sit within a wider industry context in which developers plan releases years ahead to align with new generations of games consoles, though which consoles will actually support these titles is often confirmed much later.
Jennifer Brandes Hepler, who has been named narrative director on Diablo 5, is a writer previously known for her work at BioWare, another well-regarded studio, on the Dragon Age series. Her involvement is notable because it points to a possible change in how Diablo's story and characters are handled, an area some long-time fans and critics have debated in relation to the series' past instalments.
Full account
At its annual BlizzCon convention over the weekend, Blizzard Entertainment confirmed two long-rumoured projects: a fifth mainline Diablo game and a new StarCraft title that abandons the series' real-time strategy roots in favour of an open-world shooter format. Diablo 5 is pencilled in for a 2029 release, with the StarCraft spin-off following in 2030. Given the timeframe, both titles are effectively being positioned for the next generation of home consoles rather than current hardware.
Diablo 5 was unveiled with a teaser trailer suggesting a return to the series' familiar dark fantasy action role-playing formula. Blizzard has indicated the story takes place in a world where the demon lord Diablo has already triumphed and seized control of the western continent, with players following a close-knit band of survivors banding together to resist. The project brings back series veterans Joe Shely as game director and Tiffany Wat as production director, while narrative duties fall to Jennifer Brandes Hepler, a former BioWare writer best known for her work on the Dragon Age trilogy. Hepler has said the game will lean on an RPG-style camp or caravan setup, allowing players to interact with companion characters in a manner reminiscent of Dragon Age and Baldur's Gate, albeit without traditional companion levelling or equipment systems.
The StarCraft announcement marks a more dramatic departure, swapping the franchise's strategy heritage for an open-world shooter built around the human Dominion faction. Promotional material accompanying the reveal frames the story around soldiers who answered the call to defend humanity and the sacrifices that bought time for those who follow, casting the player as the next to take up that fight. Details remain sparse compared with Diablo 5, with coverage so far focused on tone and setting rather than gameplay specifics.
Neither game has a confirmed platform line-up beyond PC. Because Blizzard now operates under Microsoft ownership, native versions for Microsoft's next-generation Xbox Helix hardware are widely expected, but no console availability has been formally announced for either title, leaving the question of PlayStation 6 support open. Commentary has speculated that Diablo 5 is the more likely of the two to reach a future PlayStation console, given that recent Diablo entries have appeared on Sony hardware either at launch or shortly after, whereas the StarCraft series has never had a PlayStation release, making its inclusion on PS6 considered less certain.
Where outlets differ
One outlet centres its report on the hardware and platform angle, weighing up the odds of PS6 versions given Blizzard's ties to Microsoft and the series' console history, while treating both games' plots and gameplay only briefly.
The other outlet, Polygon, instead concentrates almost entirely on Diablo 5's narrative team, giving extensive background on writer Jennifer Hepler's prior career at BioWare on the Dragon Age series, including the harassment she faced after Dragon Age 2's release, and quotes her directly on the game's caravan/companion mechanics.
The platform-focused report treats the StarCraft shooter as roughly equal in importance to Diablo 5, while the Polygon piece does not discuss the StarCraft game at all, focusing solely on Diablo 5's writing staff and story premise.
Coverage
- Push Square — Diablo 5 and a New Starcraft Game Revealed, But Will They Be on PS6?
- Polygon — Diablo 5 Has A Surprising Connection To Dragon Age