Battle.net Is No More, As Blizzard Renames Its Launcher App

Blizzard has taken the next major step to phasing out the classic Battle.net name it's used for the past two decades. With the release of a new update, the company's launcher app no longer bears the Battle.net branding.

Formerly known as the Battle.net app, the company's Steam-style launcher for its PC games is now simply known as the Blizzard app, as pictured below.

In terms of functionality and design, nothing else has changed about the app, which handles downloading updates and launching Blizzard's various PC games. The company announced its plans to eliminate the Battle.net name last year, and newer services--like Blizzard Streaming and Blizzard Voice--have launched with the new branding.

"When we created Battle.net, the idea of including a tailored online-gaming service together with your game was more of a novel concept, so we put a lot of focus on explaining what the service was and how it worked, including giving it a distinct name," Blizzard explained. "Over time, though, we've seen that there's been occasional confusion and inefficiencies related to having two separate identities under which everything falls--Blizzard and Battle.net. Given that built-in multiplayer support is a well-understood concept and more of a normal expectation these days, there isn't as much of a need to maintain a separate identity for what is essentially our networking technology."

For those of us with fond memories of playing games like Diablo II on Battle.net, it is somewhat of a sad thing to see the name abandoned after all these years. But hey, at least the Necromancer is coming back.