According to the report from GameIndustry.biz, Vicarious Visions (Skylanders; Crash Bandicoot: N. Sane Trilogy; Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2) is being merged into Blizzard Entertainment and will be dedicated to the company’s existing games and initiatives.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier released an exposé about the dismantling of the Blizzard Classic Games team, the absorption of Vicarious Visions and the company’s plans regarding Warcraft 3: Reforged, Diablo IV and the rumored Diablo 2 remake.
According to the article, until the last year the Diablo 2 remake was set to be developed by the so-called Blizzard’s Team 1, the developers behind Warcraft 3: Reforged. Internal Blizzard documents assign the game’s failures to poor planning, miscommunication, and financial pressure from management resulting in the rushed release. In October 2020, the division was reorganized: a number of developers were moved to different jobs within Blizzard, others were cut.
Blizzard is still committed to updates for Warcraft 3: Reforged, but it will likely be given to an outsourced team. The company has also announced that StarCraft II was ending all ongoing development. Meanwhile, a group at Vicarious Visions is working on the Diablo 2 remake, dubbed Diablo 2: Resurrected previously.
