We’re pleased to announce that Diablo III is NOW LIVE and available for purchase online at www.diablo3.com and at retailers throughout most of the world. Check out the press release for further details, and we’ll see you in the Burning Hells!

We’re pleased to announce that several official midnight launch events will be taking place around the world, starting on the evening of May 14, to celebrate the May 15 launch of Diablo III! See the press release for further details, and check out our global Launch Event site to find a location near you.

As you and your friends explore the “Darkness Falls, Heroes Rise” site, you'll find exciting new information about Diablo III, epic videos, unlockable content, contests, and the opportunity to earn exclusive sigils for use on your customizable banner when Diablo III launches.

Join the fight for Sanctuary today! Venture to New Tristram, seek the fallen star, and fulfill your heroic destiny.

We hope you enjoyed our April Fools' Day jokes for 2012! If you missed them, check out this year's pranks:

• Blizzard Kids
• Supply Depot
• Fledgling Heroes
• Zergotchi

And so, the Blizzard Joke Squad go galumphing back whence they came, hiding amid the slithy toves that gyre and gimble in the wabe, busily plotting and scheming for the future. See you again next year!

Games can be incredibly useful tools to teach players valuable skills and life lessons. To help young gamers take learning “to the max^™,” we’re launching Blizzard Kidzz: a suite of educational games set in the Blizzard game universes. Blizzard Kidzz games will cover important subjects for gamers aged 6 and up, including mathematics, reading/writing, science, history, and more! Visit the Blizzard Kidzz preview page now for screenshots, game descriptions, and preorder information!

Blizzard Entertainment is proud to announce a revolutionary new handheld title set in its award-winning StarCraft universe, StarCraft: Supply Depot! Read more about this epic gaming experience coming soon for iOS and Android devices, and play an exclusive demo of the game featuring the complete first mission!

Pushed to their limits, the beleaguered terrans plan a last-ditch attempt to save their people from extinction. They enter deep development on the most important research project of their time, one that will elevate warfare forever.

Check out the StarCraft: Supply Depot preview now!

We are proud to announce the impending launch of a series of novels written specifically with younger Blizzard gamers in mind. This series of novels, titled Fledgling Heroes, will focus primarily on themes and topics that are relevant to teen and tween readers while still delivering epic, heart-pounding, page-turning action.

At Blizzard Entertainment, we’ve been telling stories for years. Stories about demons from a plane of eternal torment and insatiable hive-mind aliens ravaging the galaxy. Tales of armies clashing mercilessly across worlds without end. These are big stories, stories that we love—but are they real enough? Do they convey the true humanity of the characters you’ve come to know and love (or hate)?

Starting this year, our new Fledgling Heroes series of young adult novels, aimed at our growing tween and teen audience, will give you a chance to watch iconic Blizzard characters fall in love, overdo it with concealer, and tackle that most dangerous of raids: the emergency house party.

Read on to learn more about the first novels to be released under the Flegling Heroes label . . .

Appetite

Kruzz has it tough. Ever since his parents sent him away to live in cosmopolitan Stormwind, life’s been bleak. By fate or just a cruel trick of biology, he’s growing faster than the other kids. Everyone makes fun of the way he talks, and Kruzz’s body image issues are so paralyzing that he’s begun to wear a disguise to class.

But then one day, he meets a gnome. Rolli’s a star forward on the flag capture team. She’s inspirational—passionate, hotheaded, and unafraid to break the rules—and shockingly, she seems really interested in Kruzz!

There’s only one problem: Kruzz is an ogre! And he can’t stop eating, especially in a kingdom full of thousands of two-legged meats.

Rolli might care about him, but first she’ll have to get over the fact that they look really awkward together. Meanwhile, Kruzz is forced to make the most difficult of choices: embrace Rolli as the girl he’s always wanted, or cook and eat her before she realizes he’s planning to cook and eat her.

The Anger Gauntlet

Trouble is festering in the Undercity. Unruly Forsaken who were between the ages of 12 and 18 before they were reanimated are starting to question their leadership—and now these unteens have made the terrible mistake of gaining the Banshee Queen’s attention!

Sylvanas Windrunner, the undisputed ruler of the Undercity, plans a masterstroke of statecraft to quell this rebellion and pacify her people. She demands that three young members of each of the Undercity’s quarters participate in a brutal gladiatorial battle to the death, where only one dead person will survive.

Into this utterly foolproof recipe for continued totalitarianism are flung the contestants of the Mage Quarter: quick-witted, capable, likeable friends Catnip Nebelung and Mason Abernathy, along with resident elevator guard Gorgus the Belly-Maw. The odds are on Gorgus winning—but odds are made to be beaten!

The Anger Gauntlet strives to ask difficult, eternal questions. Is it okay to take someone else’s unlife if it means saving your own? Should we trust our leaders? And are 400 pages really enough to describe an arrow’s exit wound?

Ross Harrison and the Secret Academy

Eleven year-old Ross can’t stand life on the Dominion homeworld of Tarsonis. Sure, the capital of terran civilization offers plenty to do, but Ross’s adoptive parents are terrible, terrible people. His “mother” is a staunch disciplinarian who makes him eat, sleep, and go to school in the bathroom and complete 5-mile forced marches while carrying his fat brother in a backpack. And his “father” is an insufferable despot and the reigning All-Districts Hate Crimes champion.

But one day, Ross receives a private holo-vid invitation. It says that he’s special, and offers him a scholarship to study at the secret military academy of the Emperor’s Legion, the elite retinue of terran special operatives that his parents—his REAL parents—once served with. When he accepts, Ross’s whole life changes.

Ross’s natural greatness sets him on the fast-track at the Legion military academy. Despite being an emotionally perplexed creature with an underdeveloped sense of self-control and no real life experience, he’s put in charge of the famous Fourth Squad that his dad used to lead. And not a moment too soon.

When all of the Legion’s officers and their husbands and wives decide to go on an irresponsible extended holiday, the nightmarish alien zerg descend on Tarsonis in droves. Ross is the only soldier in the entire Dominion military with enough bravado and drive to save the planet from annihilation!

We’re also working on a new collection of short stories to answer one of the questions we’re most often asked about our more famous heroes and villains—“But what were they like in their early years?” Discover the turbulent adolescence of popular faces like 13-galactic-cycles-old Zeratul as he struggles with his budding psionic powers, or join young Garrosh Hellscream as he deals with an absentee father and natural disasters on a planetary scale.

Spend time with then-Warchief Thrall and Archmage Jaina Proudmoore in the warm summer days after the fall of Archimonde, when the mistrust between Alliance and Horde seems destined to fade away, and anything—anything—can happen.

The Fledgling Heroes project is something that we’ve really wanted to do ever since we started making games, but we had to wait for the right time.

And the right time... is now.

Say goodbye to your dusty old Battle.net Authenticator and hello to its new incarnation: the Zergotchi! Blizzard Entertainment’s newest authentication system takes the next step in both virtual pet and Authenticator technology to provide you with the login experience of your life! The Zergotchi will not only be an endless source of fun but will also make sure your account stays as secure and safe as ever – in style. Feed it, play with it, care for it, and give it the love it needs to grow into the monster it was meant to be.

Features:

- Adds an additional layer of security to your account
- Impressive 16-bit display
- Grows according to your play-style
- Intuitive, user-friendly interface

Check out this page to read more about the marvelous Zergotchi.

Visit the Blizzard Store today and become the proud owner of this next-generation Authenticator. But please hurry – supplies are limited!

Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase today announced that the license agreement for World of Warcraft in mainland China has been renewed for an additional three years, building on the two companies’ nearly three years of existing cooperation on the game. The new agreement also sets the stage for the Chinese release of World of Warcraft’s upcoming fourth expansion set, Mists of Pandaria. For more information, see the press release.

• A world map of the isle of Pandaria, including two previously unannounced zones: the Dread Wastes and the Krasarang Wilds.

• A bestiary of Pandaria’s wondrous and monstrous races, like the tyrannical mogu and the wise jinyu.

• Revised zone & dungeon pages, featuring videos of the Wandering Isle, Jade Forest, and Valley of the Four Winds.

• Updated monk and pandaren pages -- check out the female pandaren, human monk, and more.

The End of Days approaches…. Diablo III is set to launch on May 15, 2012, and you can be ready to play the minute the servers go live by pre-purchasing the game digitally on Battle.net today. Simply complete the digital pre-sale process, and your account will be flagged for automatic access to Diablo III when it launches at 12:01 a.m. PDT on May 15.

If you would rather play Diablo III for FREE, the World of Warcraft Annual Pass is still available for a limited time... but don’t delay, because the Annual Pass offer ends at 12:01 a.m. PDT on May 1, 2012.

Check out the official press release for further details on the upcoming launch of Diablo III, or head to the Diablo III pre-sales page on Battle.net to pre-purchase your digital copy now.

Want a shot at naming a territory on the upcoming RISK: StarCraft^® game board? If you’re the lucky winner of USAopoly’s sweepstakes, you’ll get the opportunity to do just that. Visit USAopoly’s Facebook page between March 12 and March 19 to learn more and to enter, but be sure to read the official rules before you do.

Wage fierce battles across the Koprulu sector and vie for galactic domination in a version of RISK that’s set in the chaotic StarCraft universe. Choose from Raynor, Valerian, Artanis, Zeratul, Kerrigan, or Za’gara, and crush your enemies with their military strategies and accompanying terran, protoss, or zerg forces. With 42 otherworldly territories at stake, there are no perfect moves, no guarantees, and no lasting alliances -- what will you risk to secure victory?

RISK: StarCraft comes with over 290 playing pieces, including three race-specific bases: the terran Command Center, a protoss Nexus, and a zerg Hatchery. RISK: StarCraft launches this summer and will be available in North American specialty stores for a suggested retail price of $49.95. The game is designed for 3 to 6 players and is recommended for ages 10 and up.

The Scroll of Resurrection has just been infused with powerful glyphs, making it more potent than ever before.  For a limited time, you can earn a free faction mount when you use a Scroll of Resurrection to bring a friend or former guildmate back to World of Warcraft.

Battle.net Balance is now live! As we announced previously, Battle.net Balance is a new feature that gives players an alternate way to purchase Blizzard digital products and services directly through their Battle.net accounts. Players are now able add to their Battle.net Balance using a variety of payment methods, and then use that balance toward Blizzard Entertainment products and services such as World of Warcraft realm transfers, character name changes, and other paid services; as well as digital versions of select Blizzard games, including Diablo II and StarCraft II. In the future, players will be also able to use Battle.net Balance for the digital World of Warcraft Battle Chest and WoW digital upgrades and to purchase digital products through the online Blizzard Store, including World of Warcraft game-time codes and Pet Store pets and mounts. In addition, with the upcoming launch of Diablo III, players will have the option to use Battle.net Balance to buy and sell items in the game’s currency-based auction house.

For more information, check out the Battle.net Balance FAQ, or head to the Battle.net Balance page in Account Management to manage your balance.

Blizzard Entertainment is proud to announce the 2012 Battle.net World Championship, a major global eSports event featuring some of the best pro-gaming competition in the world.Slated to take place in Asia toward the end of 2012, the Battle.net World Championship will host this year’s StarCraft II and World of Warcraft Arena World Championship tournaments. Blizzard gamers and eSports fans from around the world will be invited to attend and witness some of the most skilled pro players on the planet battle it out for cash and glory.

We’re excited to be showcasing Blizzard eSports on a truly global stage this year. We're also heavily focused on getting Diablo III, Mists of Pandaria, and Heart of the Swarm into players’ hands as soon as possible. In light of our jam-packed schedule, we’ve decided to hold the next BlizzCon in 2013.

More details about the 2012 Battle.net World Championship and BlizzCon 2013, including specific dates and locations, will be coming in the months ahead.

From everyone at Blizzard to you and yours, have a safe and happy holiday season!

To help celebrate, we've prepared a Holiday Card Gallery featuring a festive Diablo III card. Enjoy!

His bicycle tires don't run flat; they explode. When news breaks, he fixes it. His collection of vintage Blizzard memorabilia could fill a garage... and it does. They made a Diablo creature in his honor, but it was deemed too frightening to include in the game. The people of Orgrimmar love him, even though he plays Alliance. He is the most interesting web content manager in the world. He doesn't always like to be in the spotlight, but when he does, Geoff prefers to be featured in a Day in the Life article.

Read the article about a day in the life of Web Content Manager Geoff Fraizer now!

At Blizzard, we love running contests! Contests give you a chance to be creative and win prizes, and they give us a chance to display the awesome results of your creativity.  You can always find our current contests on the Blizzard Contest page.

We also run contests on Facebook and Twitter -- you can find links to our social media pages listed on the right side of our contact page.

Here are some of our current contests:
 

Holiday Dessert -- Ends December 20, 2011
Contest Type: Baking
Prize: Prize package
 

The ANZ Diablo III Beta-Key Twitter Contest -- Ends December 31, 2011
Contest Type: Writing
Note: Residents of Australia and New Zealand only; check Eligibility
Prize: Diablo III beta key

Student Art Contest -- Ends January 15, 2012
Contest Type: Environment Art
Note: United States and Canada College or University Students only; check Eligibility
Prize: Three month mentorship by World of Warcraft art team, Prize package
 

Core Hound Pup Adoption Campaign -- Ends January 26, 2012
Contest Type: World of Warcraft Screenshot
Prize: Apple iPad

To prepare for the holidays, Great-Father Winter has massively buffed your gift-giving abilities. For a limited time, we’re offering epic savings of up to 75% on select World of Warcraft products through the online Blizzard Store:

• WoW: Battle Chest for $5 (reg. $19.99)
• Cataclysm for $20 (reg. $39.99)
• Wrath of the Lich King for $10 (reg. $39.99)
• Celestial Steed for $10 (reg. $25)
• Pandaren Monk for $5 (reg. $10)

With these deals, there’s never been a better time to recruit a friend to World of Warcraft or hook up your guildmate with a new mount or pet. Click here to start shopping, but don’t delay; these offers end Monday, December 19, 2011.

For players throughout Brazil who have been waiting for the launch of World of Warcraft, today’s the day! The realms are live, a fully localized version of the game, including The Burning Crusade, is in stores now for a suggested price of BRL 29.90, and Wrath of the Lich King and Cataclysm are also available for BRL 99.90 each.

The Brazilian language pack is available for download for current players who’d like to switch over to it, and free realm transfers are available from certain realms to the new Brazilian realms.

Check out the official launch press release for full details.

Spike TV Recognizing Blizzard Founders With “Gamer God” Award

The Spike TV Videogame Awards are coming up, and Spike has just announced that they’ll bestow their second-ever Gamer God award upon Blizzard Entertainment’s three founders, Mike Morhaime, Allen Adham, and Frank Pearce. In addition, Diablo III’s full opening cinematic will make its world premiere during the show. Check out Spike TV’s official announcement for full details, and tune into the VGAs on December 10 at 8:00 p.m. / 7:00 p.m. Central.

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS), the professional game-industry organization dedicated to advancing the artistic values of the interactive entertainment community, just announced that our very own Frank Pearce, Blizzard Entertainment cofounder and EVP of product development, has been appointed to its Board of Directors. Frank brings his own special brand of grumpy wisdom and blunt objectivity to the AIAS Board, and will represent the interests of the Horde and the Alliance equitably. See the AIAS’ official press release for more information. Congrats, Frank!

Patch 4.3: Hour of Twilight features something for everyone. From a new raid to unexplored dungeons to the latest story developments to shake the world of Azeroth, this content update introduces a new tier of armor sets, the legendary “Fangs of the Father” rogue quest line, Transmogrification for cosmetic armor and weapon customization, Void Storage as a handy long-term storage option, Raid Finder to make forming pick-up raids easier than ever, and much more.

Watch the trailer now, and also make sure to read the new Warcraft short story Charge of the Aspects.

Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) has a love/hate relationship with World of Warcraft in the latest WoW TV spot. Click here to watch it now.

Chuck Norris didn’t break a sweat filming the newest World of Warcraft television spot. Instead, he made the director cry and then cooled himself with the tears.

Watch the new WoW commercial now.

World of Warcraft turns seven on November 23, 2011! It’s been a truly incredible seven years, and we’d like to thank you all for joining us for yet another fantastic year. To celebrate, players who log into the game between November 20 and December 3 will earn a feat of strength added to their Achievements and a “Celebration Package” item. Using your item will get the celebrations rolling by shooting off fireworks*, applying a (visual only) tabard to your character, and granting a 7% bonus to experience and reputation gains while active.

We look forward to another year of adventures ahead and many more to come!

*Please observe all goblin and gnome fire hazard warnings and celebrate responsibly.

Like it or not, it’s pretty much the law that you have to buy gifts for everyone at this time of year. Thankfully, Blizzard has your back, because now you can deliver a $60 gift for less than 30 bucks.  For a limited time, StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty is available for a mere $29.99 — that’s 50% off the suggested retail price. 

Click here for details, but don’t delay; this offer ends Monday November 28^th.

Battle.net Mobile Authenticator – Java Version Support Update

In the weeks ahead, we will be discontinuing the Java-based (J2ME) versions of the Battle.net Mobile Authenticator currently available for download at http://mobile.blizzard.com. This includes versions of the Battle.net Mobile Authenticator for mobile devices like the Motorola RAZR, Nokia's Series 40, and other "non-smartphones."
 
The iPhone®, Android™, and Windows® Phone 7 versions of the Battle.net Mobile Authenticator are not affected by this, and will continue to be supported and available at https://us.battle.net/account/support/mobile-auth-download.html.
 
Any Battle.net Mobile Authenticators previously downloaded from http://mobile.blizzard.com will still continue to function, as will the version available through BlackBerry® AppWorld™. However, we will not be providing further updates after December 13, 2011, and that will also be the last day these versions will be available for download from http://mobile.blizzard.com. The downloadable ringtones and wallpapers available at this site will also be discontinued, but we’re looking into ways to offer them as free downloads from our community websites in the future.
 
For more information on the Battle.net Mobile Authenticator, please refer to the FAQ.
 
iPhone is a trademark of Apple Inc. Android is a trademark of Google Inc. Use of this trademark is subject to Google Permissions. Portions of this page are reproduced from work created and shared by Google and used according to terms described in the Creative Commons 3.0 Attribution License. BlackBerry®, AppWorld™ and related trademarks, names and logos are the property of Research In Motion Limited and are registered and/or used in the U.S. and countries around the world. Used under license from Research In Motion Limited. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries.

We’re pleased to announce that World of Warcraft will be launching in Brazil on December 6, 2011! On that day, gamers in Brazil will be able to purchase the fully localized Brazilian Portuguese version of the game and its expansions digitally and at retail stores throughout the country, and we’ll be opening up a new set of designated Brazilian Portuguese realms. In addition, existing World of Warcraft players on North American realms will be able to download a free Brazilian Portuguese language pack with the upcoming release of patch 4.3, Hour of Twilight. For more information on the upcoming release of World of Warcraft in Brazil, including the official launch event being held in Sao Paulo on December 6, check out the official press release.

The winners of this year's pumpkin-carving contest have been chosen -- and they're monstrously spectacular. We'd like to thank everyone who participated this year, and we can't wait to see your mad scientist skills in action again next time around. Check out all of the creepy, incredible, and creative winning pumpkins here.

The fourth World of Warcraft expansion set, Mists of Pandaria, has been unveiled! Shrouded in fog since the world was sundered more than ten thousand years ago, the ancient realm of Pandaria has remained unspoiled by war. Its lush forests and cloud-ringed mountains are home to a complex ecosystem of indigenous races and exotic creatures — including the noble and enigmatic pandaren. Will the mists of Pandaria part to reveal the world's salvation… or will the battle to control this new land push the Horde and the Alliance over the brink of war and into total annihilation?

In Mists of Pandaria, players will be able to explore an all-new continent while reaching new heights of power on their way to an increased level cap of 90. In addition, adventurers can choose whether to side with the Horde or the Alliance as World of Warcraft’s first neutral race — the pandaren — and master the ways of Pandaria’s ancient martial arts as the all-new monk class.

For more information, check out the official press release, and visit the new World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria website for screenshots, information about the new features, concept art, the announcement trailer, and more.

Since we originally unveiled Heart of the Swarm back in May, we’ve continued working in secret, laboring in the dark recesses of Blizzard’s sheetrock-lined offices on the dank and gloomy coast of Southern California. Today, at BlizzCon 2011, we showcased the future of StarCraft II with a new teaser cinematic.  Check it out!

Are you ready for BlizzCon 2011? Blizzard Entertainment's two-day gaming festival begins this Friday, October 21, at the Anaheim Convention Center. The sold-out show features developer discussion panels, top-tier tournament competition, the popular costume and dance contests hosted by Jay Mohr, an epic closing concert featuring Foo Fighters, and much more.

You can still join us from home by purchasing a BlizzCon Virtual Ticket, featuring more than 50 hours of live HD coverage streaming online as well as the exclusive BlizzCon 2011 World of Warcraft pet, Murkablo, and yet-to-be-revealed StarCraft II in-game gift. DIRECTV customers in the U.S. can also order BlizzCon as a Pay Per View event and get a Virtual Ticket for free. For more information, read our recent press release or visit BlizzCon.com.

The Halloween season has finally arrived, and we’re ready to cut straight to the heart of the holiday. If you’re dying to pick up a knife and hack, gash, slash, and jab at something, then you might be excited to hear that as of October 11,  Blizzard’s 2011 Halloween Pumpkin Carving Contest has officially begun! Unleash your magical axes, psi blades, chitinous claws, and other creative cutlery to carve up Blizzard-themed jack-o’-lanterns of epic awesomeness. If you’re unclear as to what epic awesomeness looks like in the flesh, you can check out last year’s winners for some inspiration.

We’ll choose ten of the grandest Cucurbita to earn a delightful prize package consisting of:

• Marauder StarCraft II Gaming Keyboard
• Banshee StarCraft II Gaming Headset
• Spectre StarCraft II Gaming Mouse
• StarCraft II Zerg Edition Messenger Bag

Don’t delay, start carving right away! The ninth annual pumpkin carving contest ends on October 25, so be sure to check out the contest page for rules and eligibility and get straight to slicing.

Several times a year, Blizzard employees around the world gather to celebrate the five-, ten-, and fifteen-year milestones of their friends and colleagues with a ceremony where each recipient is honored with their service award. We now present a gallery with examples of awards that have been handed out over the years in recognition of the hard work, great resolve, and unwavering dedication that has helped make Blizzard the company you know today.

Check out the gallery now!

The Warcraft Fan Art Section has been updated with 6 new pieces of fan artwork.

Would you like to share your artistic talents with the community? Submit your fan art today!

We’ve updated our Trading Card Game art gallery to feature ten new pieces. Each image is taken directly from the official World of Warcraft Trading Card Game. Be sure to give a shout-out to your favorite pieces in the comments.

The World of Warcraft: Burning Crusade Art gallery has been updated with five pieces representing the Warcraft universe. These pieces offer a tantalizing look at the creativity inspired by our virtual worlds.

The Warcraft Fan Art Section has been updated with 5 new pieces of fan artwork.

Would you like to share your artistic talents with the community? Submit your fan art today!