Heroes of the Storm is officially back from the dead, or at least the life support known as “maintenance mode.” As announced during BlizzCon 2026, a big new content update hit Blizzard’s all-star multiplayer strategy game (MOBA), adding new hero Xal’atath in the game’s biggest update in years.
Xal’atath, a void-powered elf, hails from the most recent World of Warcraft storyline. She’s a ranged assassin (naturally) who builds up Soul Essence, and releases void orbs when charged. She can mark and target enemy heroes, blink in and out of range, and summon a portal to spawn an overwhelming army of void minions.
With Xal’atath, the total number of playable characters in the game has risen to 91!
At launch, Xal’atath is only available for a real-money cost of $7.99. Somewhat unconventional, but so is resurrecting an almost dead-and-buried online game. Xal’atath will be made available to purchase with gold (a regularly accrued in-game currency for purchasing heroes and skins) later this year, around November.
Blizzard is honest about only charging real money for the new hero: “The first is simplicity: we want to make it as easy as possible for all players to acquire, whether you have played every day for over a decade or this is your very first time trying out Heroes of the Storm. The second is to help us best gauge sustainability, which leads us into the philosophy and design pillars guiding our team. […] We want to ensure we all can continue enjoying this game for a long, long time, and that requires a thoughtful approach that avoids overextending ourselves while also keeping the game feeling fresh for the community.”
After firmly establishing itself as the third-most popular MOBA behind League of Legends and Dota 2, Heroes of the Storm enjoyed a sizable esports scene and fanbase since its launch in 2015. But Blizzard officially shut down active updates in 2022, shifting the game into maintenance mode where it received minimal patches and balance changes. The last new hero, Hogger, was released in 2020.
Blizzard is promising a “new era” for Heroes of the Storm, embracing its chaotic fun that sets it apart from other MOBAs. As a big fan of HotS from back in the day, I’m totally on board with this! I’ve even jumped on to play a few matches with friends this last week, and it still has all the charm I remember from this well-designed, streamlined MOBA featuring some of my favorite gaming characters and monsters.
Xal’atath isn’t a one-off, either. The BlizzCon announcement teased at least one more new hero in development.
Watching Heroes of the Storm on Twitch can earn you some free goodies, from now until October 5:
- 1 Hour – 1000 Gold
- 2 Hours – Epic Loot Chest
- 4 Hours – Legendary Loot Chest
- 8 Hours – Epic Deadly Chaos Wolf
Heroes of the Storm is free-to-play on PC and Mac. It’s rated T for Teen.
