Overwatch 2 has just been released, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Warzone 2.0 are a few weeks away, and WoW: Dragonflight is close to completion. That leaves us with just Diablo IV which is coming out in 2023. Blizzard casually announced a new IP back in January through one of its blog posts. The description of the game tells us that it will be set in a brand new universe and will be full of heroes. In the blog, Blizzard was recruiting software engineers, “world builders” and “storytellers” for its next survival game.
Join us in writing our next chapter: https://t.co/yf7W5p9ERQ pic.twitter.com/vWtkDYh1kX — Blizzard Entertainment (@Blizzard_Ent) January 25, 2022 It has been over nine months since and we still do not have a title for the game. We know that the new survival IP will be for PC and consoles but that’s about it. Recently, Blizzard has been looking for candidates to fill the role of Senior FPS Mission Designer for the unannounced survival game. According to the job post, the designer will be tasked with “building amazing FPS first open-world multiplayer spaces.” The job post also mentions that the candidate will help in creating “multiplayer mission-based gameplay” and “advocating FPS gameplay across all of content/activity/mission design.” The posting also mentions that the ideal candidate should have a deep understanding of FPS content, gameplay, level design, and scenario design. There is a mention of extra points if the candidate loves creating and solving gameplay puzzles.
The new fantasy survival IP
From the job posting itself, the new IP looks to be a multiplayer survival FPS. There will be co-op missions and gameplay puzzles. We can imagine an FPS version of World of Warcraft or Diablo as the new Blizzard title also has some fantasy themes to it based on the concept art. While it does say first-person shooter, it does not necessarily mean that players have guns; think of Skyrim’s implementation of the first-person view mode and the bow mechanics in the game. Several “boomer shooters” have also managed to sidestep the use of firearms. The mention of gameplay puzzles does not necessarily mean actual puzzles but perhaps it alludes to stepping on certain spots or destroying a fake wall like what we see in Elden Ring. It could also mean picking locks or trying a combination of spells to open a locked door. As an open-world multiplayer survival game, we can imagine something similar to Valheim or No Man’s Sky. It may have a massive map with dungeons that players can explore. It could also have a strong base-building gameplay which would be new for Blizzard. It would be interesting how Blizzard intends to implement an open-world survival FPS MMO set in a fantasy world. We may be looking at another live service game similar to Blizzard’s current lineup of titles. We hope that more details about the game emerge soon as everything we have is purely speculation. Perhaps we can hear about it at The Game Awards where Blizzard is rumored to announce the pre-orders for Diablo IV.
