Overwatch Director Giving Keynote at DICE, Here's What He'll Talk About

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences announced today that Overwatch game director Jeff Kaplan will give the keynote presentation at next month's D.I.C.E. conference in Las Vegas.

Kaplan's presentation is titled "Overwatch: How Blizzard Created a Hopeful Vision for the Future." The developer, who previously served as game director for World of Warcraft, will talk about "how great challenges became great opportunities" as it relates to Overwatch.

Overwatch, Blizzard's first brand-new franchise in 17 years, was one of the most celebrated games of 2016. Here at GameSpot, we named the team-based multiplayer shooter our overall Game of the Year.

Some of D.I.C.E.'s other presentations will be held by people like Insomniac Games founder Ted Price, Marvel Games creative director Bill Rosemann, and Magic Leap "chief game wizard" Graeme Devine. Halo boss Bonnie Ross and Oculus head of content Jason Rubin will also give talks.

The D.I.C.E. 2017 conference takes place February 21-23 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. The presentations are usually livestreamed, though organizers have not announced any specifics about presentation start times or where you can watch. We'll report back with more information as it becomes available.

D.I.C.E. will also host an awards show. Naughty Dog's Uncharted 4: A Thief's End leads the way with 10 total nominations, including a nod for overall Game of the Year. You can see a full list of categories and nominees here.

D.I.C.E, which stands for Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain, is not related to Battlefield developer DICE.