Blizzard Watch Weekly: Ducks are out, Diablo is in

Noblegarden has come and (almost) gone again in WoW, which leaves the game with far fewer ducks. Though that also means I don’t have to log on across several alts and pick a fight with a giant duck-druid in hopes of loot. However, this coming week we have a new Diablo 3 season — Season 31, or Kanai’s Cube-o-Rama — so we’re simply replacing ducks with demons for the week’s excitement. Well, when in Sanctuary.

There’s a lot coming up this month, but unless you play Diablo 3, next week could be kind of quiet while we wait for Season 4 to arrive in Dragonflight, Season 10 to arrive in Overwatch, and Season 4 to arrive in Diablo 4. And maybe some other things that I’m forgetting right now.

So let’s run down the news from this past week and talk about what’s coming up next week. It’s not much, but it’s not nothing.

New this week

• Noblegarden is live in WoW… at least for another day. This holiday is really come and go, and it feels even more so due to a new low drop rate mount. If the event is still running, you may still have a chance to get your spring-themed flying carpet by fighting the duck boss.
• WoW Classic Season of Discovery Phase 3 is now live, with the new Nightmare Incursion events, the Sunken Temple raid, and a selection of other oddities — like the bosses from the last half of Blackrock Depths hanging out in the Grim Guzzler relaxing… chances are they won’t officially make their appearance until Phase 4.
• Hearthstone Battlegrounds Season 7 has been announced, with the addition of Battlegrounds Duos, a new two-player version of Battlegrounds. It was announced at BlizzCon without a release date and this is the first we’ve heard about it since. Duos features four two-player heroes, including our favorite two-headed ogre, Cho’gall. It launches on April 16.
• WoW Dragonflight Season 4 has an official start date: April 23, meaning you’re running out of time to wrap up Season 3 and get Ahead of the Curve or Cutting Edge achievements for raiding, Keystone Master and Keystone Hero achievements for Mythic+, and for PVPers to collect their Vicious Moonbeasts (and other PVP loot and appearances).

Coming soon

• April 12: Diablo 3 Season 31 is on the way! The team announced that the new season will revive the Kanai’s Cube theme from Season 20 that we dubbed Kanai’s Cube-o-Rama, letting you stack Legendary powers from any category in Kanai’s Cube, making for some interesting new combos. Heck, even I played that season and I usually don’t have the patience to stick with them. The new season goes live on April 12, and is expected to last around three months.

This week’s podcasts

• Blizzard Watch Podcast: Noblegarden has gone to the ducks and we’re here for it

What to play this weekend

If you’re at a loss for how to spend your free gaming hours, we have some suggestions, with a pair of snazzy new platforms, a unique haunted house horror, and a fantastic freebie with The Outer Worlds free on the Epic Game Store — you won’t find a deal better than that. The deal is available through April 11, after which it’s still a great game, just pricier.