Overwatch 2 Fans Worried as Director Leaves Blizzard After 19 Years

Overwatch series director Jeff Kaplan is leaving Blizzard after 19 years, leaving fans of the series worried about Overwatch 2 and the future of the IP. The news comes the way of Kaplan and an official statement shared by Blizzard, and it also comes as a complete shock to fans. Kaplan has not only served as the director of the series, but he's been the face of it.

At the moment of publishing, it's unclear why Kaplan is leaving, but it appears to be on good terms. In his own statement, which was released as part of Blizzard's larger statement, Kaplan doesn't say much of consequence, but thanks everyone that has worked under, with, and for.

"I am leaving Blizzard Entertainment after 19 amazing years," said Kaplan. "It was truly the honor of a lifetime to have the opportunity to create worlds and heroes for such a passionate audience. I want to express my deep appreciation to everyone at blizzard who supported our games, our game teams, and our players. But I want to say a special thanks to the wonderful game developers that shared in the journey of creation with me. Never accept the world as it appears to be. Always dare to see it for what it could be. I hope you do the same."

Stepping into Kaplan's role as director is Aaron Keller, someone who Blizzard describes as a company veteran and "a founding member of the Overwatch team." In the statement, Keller provides the following update on Overwatch 2.

"Speaking of Overwatch 2, development is continuing at a good pace," said Keller. "We have an exceptional vision we're executing on, the reaction from many of you to the updates we shared at BlizzConline thrilled us, and we have exciting reveals planned for this year and beyond as we ramp to launch. We'll be sharing more frequent updates about Overwatch 2 progress and new features in the live game with you all very soon."

While it sounds like we may hear more about Overwatch 2 soon, right now, fans are worried about the sequel.