Blizzard Entertainment announced at BlizzCon 2026 that Xal'atath, a key figure from World of Warcraft's recent Midnight expansion, will be the next hero to join the Heroes of the Storm roster. Xal'atath is scheduled to arrive on the game's Public Test Realm next weekend, with availability for BlizzCon attendees starting immediately.
This marks the first new character addition to Heroes of the Storm in almost six years, with Hogger being the most recent release in December 2020. Blizzard had previously ceased active development on the game a year prior to Hogger's release. The company indicated during the BlizzCon presentation that Xal'atath might not be an isolated addition; Blizzard stated it would consider further hero additions based on player reception.
Heroes of the Storm, which launched in 2015, was Blizzard's entry into the multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) genre. The game aimed to bring together characters from various Blizzard franchises, including Warcraft, StarCraft, Diablo, and Overwatch. Despite its origins in the custom game scene of Warcraft 3, Blizzard's official MOBA struggled to achieve the same level of mainstream success as contemporaries like League of Legends and Dota 2.
Development resources for Heroes of the Storm were significantly reduced by 2018, a shift compared to Blizzard's continued investment in titles such as World of Warcraft and Hearthstone. Following 2020, the addition of new heroes ceased. While the game has primarily received balance adjustments and bug fixes in recent years, the BlizzCon announcement concerning Xal'atath suggests a potential recommitment from Blizzard to its MOBA title. Heroes of the Storm is currently available on Windows PC and Mac, and Xal'atath's addition is slated for September 28.