Battle.net is such an iconic part of gaming history. When you think of Blizzard, Battle.net immediately comes to mind. Back when the company launched it in 1996, as an online gaming service for Diablo , it was absolutely revolutionary. As Blizzard grew into the icon it is, Battle.net’s tendrils spread to allow it to become a hub for DRM, digital distribution, and online game services for all Blizzard titles. And now, Blizzard is moving away from that name.
Blizzard has decided to start working in the name “Blizzard” everywhere instead. Blizzard Streaming and Blizzard Voice are two of the most obvious examples. I know, it seems odd to suddenly step away from something we know , Blizzard’s reasoning is sound.
Here’s the company’s official explanation from its Battle.net announcement.
“When we created Battle.net, the idea of including a tailored online-gaming service together with your game was more of a novel concept, so we put a lot of focus on explaining what the service was and how it worked, including giving it a distinct name. Over time, though, we’ve seen that there’s been occasional confusion and inefficiencies related to having two separate identities under which everything falls – Blizzard and Battle.net. Given that built-in multiplayer support is a well-understood concept and more of a normal expectation these days, there isn’t as much of a need to maintain a separate identity for what is essentially our networking technology.”
I get it. This makes sense. But, I can’t help but reflexively call it Battle.net. It’s like how I’ll never call Chicago’s Willis Tower anything other than the Sears Tower. Or how Rosemont, IL’s Allstate Arena will always be the Rosemont Horizon to me. Battle.net is ingrained in our brains!
Source: Battle.net