15 months after a licensing spat, Blizzard and NetEase make up to bring games like Diablo, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft back to China

Blizzard games are set to return to China in a new licensing agreement, well over a year after games like Diablo 4 and World of Warcraft exited the country after Blizzard and NetEase failed to reach an agreement.

Back in November 2022, it was reported that Blizzard games would leave China in January 2023 due to Blizzard and NetEase being unable to renew the licensing agreement between the two companies. Diablo, World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Overwatch, Starcraft, and Heroes of the Storm all departed mainland China as of January 2023, well over a year ago at this point.

Today, April 10, Blizzard and NetEase have announced a brand new licensing agreement for the distribution of Blizzard-made games in China. "After continuing discussions over the past year, both Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase are thrilled to align on a path forward to once again support players in mainland China and are proud to reaffirm their commitment to delivering exceptional gaming experiences," the two companies announce.

The brand new licensing agreement will give Chinese players access to all the same Blizzard games available under the old licensing agreement between Blizzard and NetEase. This includes World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Overwatch, Diablo, and games set within the Starcraft and Warcraft universes, as outlined by the Blizzard announcement just above.

"We at Blizzard are thrilled to re-establish our partnership with NetEase and to work together, with deep appreciation for the collaboration between our teams, to deliver legendary gaming experiences to players in China," Blizzard president Johanna Faries says. "We are immensely grateful for the passion the Chinese community has shown for Blizzard games throughout the years, and we are focused on bringing our universes back to players with excellence and dedication."

"Celebrating our collaborations, we are thrilled to embark on the next chapter, built on trust and mutual respect, to serve our users in this unique community that we’ve built together," adds William Ding, NetEase CEO. 

"Returning Blizzard’s legendary games to players in China while exploring ways to bring more new titles to Xbox demonstrates our commitment to bringing more games to more players around the world," Xbox head Phil Spencer says. 

Additionally, "Microsoft Gaming and NetEase have also entered into an agreement to explore bringing new NetEase titles to Xbox consoles and other platforms," the press release for the licensing agreement reads. It's not yet clear which games these could potentially be - NetEase publishes a vast amount of games including Marvel Duel and Super War, Lord of the Rings: Rise to War, and unreleased games like Yakuza creator Toshihiro Nagoshi's new project.

Check out our new games 2024 guide for a look over all the other upcoming titles we've got to look forward to.