A new Overwatch game is reportedly in development for mobile devices, with South Korean publishing partners supposedly referring to it as “Overwatch 3.”
When Blizzard made the jump from Overwatch to Overwatch 2, it tore the community down the middle to the point it still hasn’t recovered today. Some wish for the classic experience to return in full, with devs only recently relenting to offer 6v6 game modes again.
New iterations don’t appear to be stopping there, however. A new report from Korean outlet Money Today Broadcasting (MTN) has claimed Blizzard just struck a deal with local publisher Nexon. As part of the deal, they can reportedly develop new content under the StarCraft IP, but it may also come with distribution rights for a yet unannounced Overwatch project.
According to the report, said project is Overwatch Mobile, a game built specifically for handheld devices. Said to be a MOBA, this would mark a significant departure from the hero shooter FPS genre Blizzard helped epitomize with the original game. Some companies that were bidding for the deal allegedly viewed it as such a big pivot they referred to it as “Overwatch 3.”
Overwatch 2 promised the arrival of PVE content, but it was ultimately scrapped partway through development.
Is Overwatch 3 really happening?
Of course, it’s worth taking this report with a heaping serve of salt. It’s entirely possible details got muddled in translation. Even if that’s not the case, however, prospective publishing partners referring to the product as Overwatch 3 doesn’t make it such. Blizzard has the final say, and for now, the game appears to be titled Overwatch Mobile.
Furthermore, while the StarCraft portion of the deal has reportedly been finalized with Nexon, the Overwatch Mobile component isn’t set in stone at the time of writing. Instead, the report simply claims “it is likely” for Nexon to also snatch up this product’s Korean and Japanese distribution rights as well.
As for the game itself, details are scarce for the time being beyond the claim it’s in the vein of a MOBA like League of Legends or even Blizzard’s own failed Heroes of the Storm. Beyond that, it’s reported that Blizzard has developed the mobile project “directly,” rather than handing it to an external studio.
Technically speaking, that would make it the third release under the Overwatch umbrella, but of course, there’s no guarantee it’s actually called Overwatch 3.
BlizzardIt’s unclear if a MOBA-style Overwatch game would include the full roster as it stands today.
For now, we’ll have to continue waiting for further details, but it appears Overwatch Mobile is indeed real, authenticating reports from the tail end of 2024 that suggested as much.
This move should come as no surprise given the install base and potential audience is enormous in the handheld space. Blizzard would be following in the footsteps of Riot Games after bringing the likes of Valorant to mobile, not to mention Activision’s success with Call of Duty Mobile under the same corporate umbrella.
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