BlizzCon

BlizzCon
	; Anaheim Convention Center
Genre	Video game
Venue	Anaheim Convention Center
Location(s)	Anaheim, California
Country	United States
Inaugurated	October 28, 2005
Most recent	November 3-4, 2023
Attendance	Nearly 1.5 million in 2021 (BlizzConline)
Organized by	Blizzard Entertainment
Website
	BlizzCon.com; BlizzConline.com (redirects)

BlizzCon (short for Blizzard Convention^[2] and sometimes stylized as Blizzcon) is an annual convention hosted by Blizzard Entertainment over the course of two days (typically Friday and Saturday) at the Anaheim Convention Center, which is 10 miles from Blizzard's HQ in Irvine, California.

The first BlizzCon was held in October 2005,^[3] and was not an overly successful event. After a year off, BlizzCon returned in 2007, with the popularity of World of Warcraft pushing attendance far higher than its first year. The convention typically announces upcoming expansions or games and new major updates along with demos, panels such as What's Next for a game, Q&A sessions, contests, tournaments, and playable demos of upcoming patches, games, or expansions. The closing ceremony features concerts by music artists like Ozzy Osborune and Blizzard's in-house band, Elite Tauren Chieftain. Blizzard generally saves major announcements about upcoming games for BlizzCon. All of the World of Warcraft expansions have been announced at BlizzCon, except for Legion which was announced at gamescom 2015 and Dragonflight which was announced via a stream on YouTube and Twitch in 2022.

On 25 April 2024, Blizzard announced that no BlizzCon would be held in 2024, though noted that it would return in future years.^[4]

Events

BlizzCon 2023 key art

There have been a total of 15 events, with one being online-only and only four cancellations. The cost of the ticket (which varies each year) grants attendees entry to the convention hall for the duration of the event and an exclusive Goodie Bag, which often contains things such as in-game rewards for their games, beta keys for upcoming Blizzard titles, and other exclusive Blizzard paraphernalia. Since the amount of tickets is finite, dates for the ticket sales are announced months in advance. On sale day, the tickets are often sold out within the first few hours.

BlizzCons and Ticket prices in USD
Year	Dates	Announced	GA	BD	VIP	Virtual
BlizzCon 2023	November 3 — 4	May 17	$299	N/A	$799	N/A
BlizzConline (2021)	February 19 — 20	September 21, 2020	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
BlizzCon 2019	November 1 — 2	April 25	$229	$750	$550	$50
BlizzCon 2018	November 2 — 3	April 9	$199	$750	N/A	$50
BlizzCon 2017	November 3 — 4	March 14	$199	$750	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2016	November 4 — 5	April 6	$199	$750	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2015	November 6 — 7	March 12	$199	$750	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2014	November 7 — 8	April 22	$199	$750	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2013	November 8 — 9	February 19	$175	$500	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2011	October 21 — 22	February 7	$175	$500	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2010	October 22 — 23	March 25	$150	$500	N/A	$40
BlizzCon 2009	August 21 — 22	February 17	$125	$500	N/A	N/A
BlizzCon 2008	October 10 — 11	May 12	$100	N/A	N/A	N/A
BlizzCon 2007	August 3 — 4	April 12	$100^[5]	N/A	N/A	N/A
BlizzCon 2005	October 28 — 29	June 28^[2]	$120^[2]	N/A	N/A	N/A

Tickets

The General Admission ticket was introduced with BlizzCon 2005 at the initial price of $120.^[2] It has gradually increased overtime, currently at $299 with BlizzCon 2023.
The Benefit Dinner ticket was introduced with BlizzCon 2009 at the initial price of $500. The dinner benefits the Children's Hospital Orange County (CHOC) Children's Foundation, with all proceeds going to them. Guests with this ticket had the opportunity to meet and chat with employees of Blizzard from various backgrounds like game developers, artists, and executives. The price would increase by $250 to $750 with BlizzCon 2014 to BlizzCon 2019. This ticket would not return with BlizzCon 2023.
The Virtual Ticket was introduced with BlizzCon 2010 at the initial price of $40. This allowed users at home to watch the convention and digest the announcements and panels from the comfort of one's home. It also provided the in-game goodies. The price would increase by $10 to $50 with BlizzCon 2018. After the success of the online-only BlizzConline, BlizzCon 2023 continued with the free livestream approach. With this shift, the Virtual Ticket was renamed as the BlizzCon Collection which is an optional purchase for those at home that provides the BlizzCon in-game goodies.
The Portal Pass ticket was introduced with BlizzCon 2019 at the initial price of $550. With BlizzCon 2023, the price was increased by $229 to $799, effectively replacing the Benefit Dinner option. It grants access to additional areas and events of the convention such as:
- The "Night at the Faire" event in the Darkmoon Faire location, the night before BlizzCon starts (this was only available at BlizzCon 2019)
- Access to the convention halls before general admission (this was only offered at BlizzCon 2019)
- Early convention entry on both days only to the private viewing lounge with video feeds of the various panels
- Meet Blizzard employees and special guests from a rotating set
- Preferred/Separate lines for registration and security, and preferred parking area
- Introduced at BlizzCon 2023: Private Concessions, Gameplay Experiences, Concierge Support

Cancellations

BlizzCon was skipped in 2006 with no reason given.
BlizzCon was canceled in 2012 due to the heavily focused development of Diablo III, Mists of Pandaria, and StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm.^[6]
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was no BlizzCon in 2020.^[7] In its place, a virtual event called BlizzConline was announced to take place on 19-20 February 2021.^[8] BlizzCon 2023 bought back the in-person event since after the COVID-19 pandemic.
While BlizzConline 2022 was announced in May 2021,^[9] it was subsequently canceled in late October in favor of focusing on development and re-imagining the future of BlizzCon.^[10]^[11]
BlizzCon was canceled in 2024, though with assurances it would return in the future.^[4]

BlizzCon Collection

Main article: BlizzCon Collection

The BlizzCon Collection provides optional in-game goodies available during and after the BlizzCon convention. It was originally known as the Virtual Ticket which provided the in-game goodies and access to the livestream of the convention but was renamed with BlizzCon 2023 due to the shift to the free livestream approach.

Applications

Mobile

BlizzCon Mobile was a fast and easy way to help make the most of the BlizzCon experience with streaming panels and videos, a complete interactive events schedule, hall maps, plus footage and results from all of BlizzCon's breathtaking esports matches. The mobile app was originally released as BlizzCon Guide on 5 October 2011 for BlizzCon 2011 but was renamed to BlizzCon Mobile on 24 October 2017 for BlizzCon 2017.

Support for using the mobile app to stream to a Chromecast^[12] was added on October 25, 2018, with patch 4.1.0.^[13] The mobile app was removed from the stores sometime before BlizzCon 2023 likely due to the shift to the free livestream approach.

2019
2019
2019
2018
2018
2018
2018
2018

TV

The BlizzCon TV app was released for Apple TV and Fire TV on 25 October 2018 along with the Chromecast streaming support for the mobile app. The app has since been removed from the stores sometime before BlizzCon 2023 likely due to the shift to the free livestream approach.

Trivia

The BlizzCon opening ceremony is traditionally inaugurated by the President of Blizzard Entertainment. Up until BlizzCon 2018, it was Mike Morhaime.
There are two BlizzCon named zones in World of Warcraft: Isle of Blizzcon from patch 7.2.0 and BlizzCon 2017 from patch 8.0.1.

Gallery

Key art

2005
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2021

Convention layout

2005
2009
2010
2011
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2017 parking map
2018
2019
2023

Logos

2005-2009 logo
BlizzCon Invitational (2005 logo)
2010-2019 logo
2016 logo
2016-2019 logo
2019 logo
BlizzConline (2021) logo
2023 logo; The borders were flattened, no longer jagged as it was since the 2010 logo