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Blizzard changes its tune, says ‘Overwatch’ could run on Nintendo Switch

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Thank You | Overwatch Anniversary 2018

Blizzard fans will be able to play one of the company’s games on a Nintendo platform for the first time in well over a decade when Diablo III launches on Switch later this year. The announcement got players wondering about the possibility of other Blizzard games releasing on the platform, and according to senior producer Pete Stilwell, at least one more is possible.

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Speaking to GameSpot, Stilwell revealed that Overwatch — along with most other Blizzard games — is “within the realm of possibility” for release on Nintendo Switch, but it would come down to which teams chose to work on a project.

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“Our team was given the task to work on [Diablo III.] If [the Overwatch team] picks up that endeavor, that’s on them,” Stilwell added. “As of right now, Diablo is our only focus on Switch.”

Blizzard’s tune seems to have changed a little bit since last year, when game director Jeff Kaplan said it would be “very challenging” for the studio to get Overwatch running on the Switch. The console is considerably less powerful than the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, but we have seen other big-budget AAA games receive Switch ports. Doom and Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, for instance, aren’t as crisp on Switch as they are on other platforms, but they’re still perfectly playable.

Stilwell did say one game you likely won’t ever see on the Switch is StarCraft II, primarily because the game would have to be significantly reworked in order to play properly on a console. We’re guessing World of Warcraft is also off the table due to the sheer number of abilities you have to cycle between during play. Hearthstone seems like an obvious choice, but we aren’t sure who would want to play the game on the Switch instead of just using their phone or tablet’s touch controls.

Diablo III: Eternal Collection arrives to Nintendo Switch later this year. It will contain both previously released expansions, as well as several Zelda-themed cosmetic items. The Switch version will support online multiplayer, as well as four-player local cooperative play with either one system or four separate systems.

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Gabe Gurwin
Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
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