Blizzard Entertainment today announced that they’re finally planning on releasing some of their games on Steam starting with Overwatch 2.
Since forever, there was only one place to play Blizzard games on PC; Battle.net. The online service that first launched in 1996 has been the exclusive place to play Diablo, World of Warcraft, Overwatch, Starcraft, and, for a brief period, Call of Duty. While the service has evolved over the years, so has the rest of the industry with both Valve and Epic Games launching successful platforms to buy and play PC games. As such, the company has determined that now is the time to change things for the better.
Blizzard Entertainment has revealed that a selection of their games are coming to Steam. The first of these titles is Overwatch 2, which lands on the platform on August 10. As to what the other games might be is anyone’s guess.
“It’s our goal at Blizzard to listen to players and try to exceed their expectations in everything we do,” said Mike Ybarra, President of Blizzard Entertainment. “While Battle.net remains a priority for us now and into the future, we’ve heard players want the choice of Steam for a selection of our games, starting with Overwatch 2 on August 10th. We’re happy to work with Valve to make that happen.”
“Gamers and developers are both going to benefit from Overwatch 2 coming to Steam,” said Gabe Newell, Valve’s president. “Gamers will have another platform where they can play a beloved game that utilizes the capabilities of Steam, and developers will benefit from the effects of having the talented team at Blizzard helping us evolve our supported features and functionality for Overwatch 2.”
On paper, Overwatch 2 makes the most sense to bring to Steam. The free-to-play hero shooter is easy for all players to download and jump into with minimal hassle. However, despite being playable through Steam, players will still need a Battle.net account. According to Blizzard, this is to enable features like cross-play with PS5 and Xbox Series X|S players, who also need an active Battle.net account. Steam players get access to Steam achievements, their friends list, and the ability to invite them straight into a game.
Blizzard Entertainment releasing their products on Steam appears to be a concentrated effort to expand their PC audience. Parent company Activision Blizzard previously revealed that making Call of Duty on PC exclusive to Battle.net was ultimately a mistake that didn’t expand the brand. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II was the first Call of Duty since Call of Duty: WWII to launch on Steam. As for what other titles might join Overwatch 2 on Steam remains a mystery. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Overwatch 2 is available now for download on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC via Battle.net. It launches on PC via Steam on August 10.
