WITH JEFF KAPLAN OUT OF BLIZZARD, WHAT’S GONNA HAPPEN TO OVERWATCH 2?
-Jeff Kaplan announced his exit from Blizzard on Tuesday.
-Aaron Keller will fill in Kaplan’s shoes.
With Kaplan gone, what is next for the soon-coming Overwatch 2?
That, my dear readers, is a very tough question to answer.
Considering the many recent instances of phony statements made by game developers and entertainment moguls, all possibly crafted with the intent to cover up some nasty inside shenanigans they don’t want to admit to publicly (ehem ehem, Disney, ehem ehem), it shouldn’t come as a shock to us that the execs at Blizzard and Mr Jeff Kaplan have come to an end of their relationship, and in the most “civil” and nicest of ways.
Are we buying the story? Yes. For one, Kaplan has always shown himself to be a constant and reliable fella’, so he just doesn’t look the part of the “fleeting” VP type. Then, there’s the tiny fact that he spent a whole 19 years of his life at the helm of the team behind the lasting Overwatch sensation. – Sounds like a committed man to us!
But, what does this mean for the release of Overwatch 2?
That’s another fair question that deserves a good answer, but before we go on to tackle that juicy story…
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Kaplan has left Blizzard, but he’s “appreciative” about it
So yes… the news of Kaplan’s exit was all true, simply because the former director himself made it clear in a statement, and of which The Verge was one of the first media channels to spread out on the internetz.
In Kaplan’s statement, he expresses his gratitude for having been part of the prestigious Blizzard brand, and to “create worlds for the fans of its titles:
“It was truly the honor of a lifetime to have the opportunity to create worlds and heroes for such a passionate audience. I want to express my deep appreciation to everyone at Blizzard who supported our games, our game teams, and our players. But I want to say a special thanks to the wonderful game developers that shared in the journey of creation with me.”
Who’s coming in to replace Kaplan?
For this purpose, the people at Blizzard looked from within their own ranks, and selected Aaron Keller to take on the post. Keller is another veteran at the company, who is also a founding member of the creative team behind Overwatch and other gaming successes.
What is Kaplan going to do now?
According to a recent post by TheFocus.com, Kaplan may be eyeing the possibility of joining also-former Blizzard member Mike Morhaime at Dreamhaven studios, a competing brand in the always-changing turf of video-game development.
Sounds like some corporate drama is on the way… and we’ll keep our eyes wide open to share all the juicy facts with all our readers.
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