How Blizzard Almost Made a Pokémon Killer
The Monster-Collecting Game That Could Have Changed Everything
In the summer of 2019, Blizzard Entertainment was working on something unprecedented. Codenamed "Project Odyssey," it was their bid to enter the monster-collecting genre dominated by Pokémon.
What We Know
- 80+ creature designs completed
Why It Was Cancelled
The official reason was "resource reallocation." The real story is more complicated.
The Activision Factor
When Activision Blizzard formed, priorities shifted. Mobile-first became the mandate. Odyssey's ambitious scope didn't fit the new directive.
Internal Conflict
Sources describe heated debates between the Odyssey team and leadership. The team wanted a premium experience. Leadership wanted monetization hooks.
What Survived
Interestingly, many Odyssey concepts appeared later in other Blizzard products:
- Creature designs influenced Hearthstone Mercenaries
- The battle system evolved into what we saw in early Overwatch 2 PvE concepts
The Bigger Picture
Project Odyssey represents a pattern at Blizzard: ambitious projects cancelled in favor of safer bets. Whether that's the right call remains to be seen.
We've reached out to former team members for comment. More details coming soon.
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