Blizzard Watch Weekly: Surviving Summer Game Fest

We’ve very nearly survived another summer gaming showcase season — there’s one more showcase today, and then we’re in the clear for another year. (Or at least until Gamescom.) Summer Game Fest isn’t exactly E3, but it may be more chaotic than E3, with hundreds of new game trailers spread across dozens of events. Now, with the big reveals out of the way, we know that there are no surprise Blizzard announcements — just a small teaser for Diablo Immortal’s Warlock class, which we already knew was coming soon — so we’re probably waiting for BlizzCon for the next big thing.

For those of you who haven’t been able to keep up with the week’s gaming extravaganza, we have a list of our favorite announcements and a list of all the showcases, complete with links so you can watch all the trailers for yourself if you want.

With Summer Game Fest metaphorically sucking all of the air out of the room, there hasn’t been a lot of Blizzard news, but we did get a couple of key release dates last week. It’s Monday so it’s time to catch up on everything that’s been happening in Blizzard games, plus what’s coming up soon.

What happened last week?

• We finally have a release date for WoW patch 12.0.7: June 16. The patch is packed with quality of life improvements and a surprising number of activities for an x.0.7 patch, including the one-boss Sporefall raid, which we have some new details on.
• It’s no cow level, but secret-hunters and fishing enthusiasts have found out how to get a pet murloc in Diablo 4.
• Blizzard announced the next Hearthstone expansion: Escape from Violet Hold.  The theme is pretty clear from the name, and it features some sneaky cards to help you make a prison break, with legendaries that break typical Hearthstone rules, bribe cards that give you and your opponent rewards, and disguised minions that can be played to either your or your opponent’s board. It’s going to be an interesting one.
• This week’s Hearthstone Tavern Brawl is UnidentifiaBrawl, in which randomness is the name of the game. Pick a class, get a selection of completely random cards, and see where things go… but we have some tips to help you win, just like always.

What’s happening this week (and beyond)

• June 2 – 9: Diablo 4 third anniversary event
• June 9: The last patch for Destiny 2 launches (and we’re pretty sad about that)
• June 16: WoW patch 12.0.7 launches
• June 17: Diablo Immortal Warlock class launches
• June 30: Diablo 4 Season 14 begins
• June 30 – August 11: Turbulent Timeways returns to Midnight
• July 7: Hearthstone’s Escape from Violet Hold expansion launches

Other things we’re playing, watching, and more

• Guild Wars 3 is coming, and it’s set a thousand years before the events of the original game. We don’t know much about the new game yet, but we won’t be seeing it until at least 2027. You can read more on the official Guild Wars 3 website.
• It’s the Summer Game Fest fallout, because last week we got to watch all of these great showcases:
  • MIX Summer Game Showcase
  • Midsummer Nights Screams
  • Black Voices in Gaming
  • PlayStation State of Play
  • Women-led Games
  • Summer Game Fest
  • Day of the Devs
  • Wholesome Direct
  • Story-Rich Showcase
  • Green Games Showcase
  • Future Games Show Summer Showcase
  • Gayming Pride Parade
  • Xbox Games Showcase + Gears of War E-Day Direct
  • PC Gamer PC Gaming Show
  • Latin American Games Showcase
  • Southeast Asian Games Showcase
  • Frosty (Australia and New Zealand) Games Fest
  • Deustche Indie Showcase
• If you want to catch everything, here’s the full list of showcases (yes, there are more) and if you just want the highlights, here’s a rundown of our favorite games from every showcase.
• This week’s Epic Games Store freebie is another duo of games, with a piratical roguelite and a fantasy turn-based strategy game with retro pixel vibes. Pick up these games for free through Thursday!

Our latest podcasts

• Blizzard Watch Podcast: Currency changes and gaming announcements
• Lore Watch Podcast: Lilith, the knife, the void, and Diablo
• Tavern Watch Podcast: TTRPG travel guides and sentient marbles

That’s all for this week. Thanks for reading, and I’ll be back next week with another weekly news recap!