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There was a period of maybe ten seconds where I believed, in some part of my withered heart, that Jeff Kaplan was not teasing Overwatch content but instead unveiling an absolutely wild business plan.
The sweeping gates of BlizzardWorld, the Blizzard theme park, combined with the core concept intrigued me. I mean, if there’s a Harry Potter theme park out there, what’s stopping the world from embracing a Blizzard themed version? Harry Potter doesn’t ever save Aiur from an endless tide of Zerg. He doesn’t deserve the accolade. At no point in the seven book series did Ron Weasley drink the blood of Mannoroth, only to slay the demon and reclaim his honor in front of his best friend Thrall.
Okay, okay, so it’s probably not going to happen. In the mean time, though, we can visit BlizzardWorld as Overwatch’s newest hybrid map. This attack/escort map takes place in a theme park chock full of references to Blizzard’s other properties.
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Before I ever watched an Overwatch cinematic, I grew up on Warcraft and Starcraft. I played the original Warcraft games as a kid, and Starcraft was the first game I ever played competitively. I racked up over one thousand wins as Undead in Warcraft 3 to score that sweet, sweet Sylvanas icon. Needless to say, BlizzardWorld is a delightful map for fans like me
That being said, there’s a wealth of easter eggs for Overwatch fans too. (There’s a scoreboard with various Overwatch characters ranked. D.Va is number two with a very respectable score, and Sombra is number one with an impossibly high score.) The map is also chaotic and fun, with gryphon themed teacups pushing players on high ledges around and probes spinning through the skies.
BlizzardWorld is part of Overwatch’s utopia, and despite being an arsenal of easter eggs, it manages to feel like part of the world. I’m not one hundred percent sure why these heroes are battling it out over giant pretzels and augmented reality stations that transport you for Aiur, but I’m glad to be along for the ride.