Olivia Richman 
StarCraft 2: Legacy of the Void is approaching its 10th birthday which has fans crossing their fingers that a new game is coming, but is there any hope for a StarCraft 3?
StarCraft 2 has continued to be a genre-defining and enduring competitive game that gamers still play and watch. But it’s still built on the foundation of 2010’s Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty. This has led some RTS players to wonder if there will be a sequel.
RTS fans are still hopeful that another StarCraft game could happen. Blizzard took over 10 years to release StarCraft 2 after Brood War launched in 1998. It’s not crazy to think that StarCraft 3 is possible after a similar timeframe, especially since the game still boasts a dedicated fandom.
In 2024, StarCraft II has around 85,000 players. This is actually down from the average 150,000 in 2023, showing a massive decline. Only about 5,000 of the current players are new, pointing towards a lack of interest from the new generation of gamers. With the game losing players and not gaining many new ones, is StarCraft 3 possible?
Is Blizzard making a StarCraft 3?
Blizzard has suggested that StarCraft 3 is unlikely to happen any time soon, but the series isnt’ dead.
In November of 2023, Blizzard CEO Mike Ibarra discussed the possibility of StarCraft 3 with Bloomberg, and was generally bearish on the idea.
During the discussion, Ibarra said that a new StarCraft game is definitely stating that if a team came forward with ideas, he’d “bet on that team.” There’s no sign that this has happened, though. Worse yet, there were also hints that the next StarCraft wouldn’t necessarily be an RTS. In the same way Warcraft 3 was followed by an MMORPG in World of Warcraft, a digital card game, and a tower defense mobile game, its future may lie in other genres.
Prior to this, Xbox executive Sarah Bond acknowledged the appetite for a new StarCraft. However, speaking during events, she has never indicated that one is in the works.
StarCraft 2 is not a dead game. It may not have as large of a playerbase as Dota 2, League of Legends, or Call of Duty, but it’s a mainstay in the niche RTS genre. StarCraft 2 streams and esports still get views as well.
Is Blizzard making a new RTS?
Blizzard is not known to be making any games in the RTS genre, but former Blizzard developers are making one.
Former Blizzard employees are actually behind a new RTS game called Stormgate, developed by Frost Giant. This includes StarCraft 2: Legacy of the Void production director Tim Morten and Warcraft 3 lead campaign designer Tim Campbell, who are working with over 50 developers to create the new RTS.
Stormgate is now available to download on Steam. Many are already comparing it to StarCraft, so RTS players are giving it a shot now that StarCraft 3 seems unlikely for the time being.
