Starcraft 2 Content Updates Have Ended So Blizzard Can Focus On The Franchise's Future

Starcraft II is over a decade old now, having launched its first installment, Wings of Liberty, in July 2010. Now, Blizzard has given an update on the game's on-going development, and has announced that big content drops for the game have come to an end--from now on, patches will focus on balance and fixes.

In a Blizzard news post, executive producer Rob Bridenbecker writes that the big update from earlier this year, which celebrated the game's anniversary, will be the last of its kind. "We’re going to continue supporting StarCraft II in the same manner as we have with our previous longstanding games, such as Brood War, focusing primarily on what our core and competitive communities care about most," Bridenbecker says.

"What this means is that we’re not going to be producing additional for-purchase content, such as Commanders and War Chests, but we will continue doing season rolls and necessary balance fixes moving forward," he continues. "On that last note, we’re not planning a Q4 balance update given that we did one a few months ago, but as always, we do plan to continue doing them as needed in the future."

This means that updates going forward will aim to keep the esports scene fresh, with a focus on high-level play. This also allows them to start looking forward to the next Starcraft project. Bridenbecker says that this "will free us up to think about what’s next, not just with regard to StarCraft II, but for the StarCraft universe as a whole."

Whether this means that Starcraft III is coming, or that we'll see Starcraft: Ghost or another spin-off at some point, remains to be seen.

We'll see more from Blizzard at Blizzcon Online in February, but we wouldn't expect any major Starcraft news there--the focus will likely be on Overwatch 2 and Diablo IV.