A turbulent situation is happening within Blizzard: after just three months as Blizzard’s co-leader, Jen Oneal is leaving Activision Blizzard (which will hurt the company’s morale…).

So far, we knew that Diablo IV and Overwatch 2 would NOT launch in 2021. Still, in the latest quarterly financial earnings conference call, Activision Blizzard announced a further delay for both games: “As we have worked with new leadership in Blizzard and within the franchises themselves, particularly in specific vital creative roles, it has become apparent that some of the Blizzard content planned for next year will benefit from more development time to reach its full potential. While we are still planning to deliver a substantial amount of content from Blizzard next year, we are now preparing for a later launch for Overwatch 2 and Diablo IV than initially envisaged.

These are two of the most eagerly anticipated titles in the industry, and our teams have made great strides towards completion in recent quarters. But we believe giving the teams some extra time to complete production and continue growing their creative resources to support the titles after launch will ensure that these releases delight and engage their communities for many years into the future. These decisions will push out the financial uplift that we had expected to see next year. But we are confident that this is the right course of action for our people, our players, and the long-term success of our franchises,” Activision Blizzard said.

Oneal issued a statement about her departure, claiming that the Activision Blizzard employees are “working towards meaningful, lasting change.” “This energy has inspired me to step out and explore how I can do more to have games and diversity intersect, and hopefully make a broader industry impact that will benefit Blizzard (and other studios) as well. While I am not sure what form that will take, I am excited to embark on a new journey to find out.

With my remaining time here, I will be transferring my responsibilities to Mike and transitioning into a new role working closely with Activision Blizzard and WIGI to determine the first steps around how the grant will be utilized and its structure,” Oneal wrote. WIGI is Woman In Games International, which got one million dollars from Activision Blizzard’s leadership for mentoring programs and skill improvement. Mike is Mike Ybarra, who will take over as Blizzard’s boss.

Changes are happening in the publisher, it seems…

Source: Gematsu, Gamesindustry