Blizzard recently announced that they will end support for all of their titles on Windows XP and Windows Vista, operating platforms that are currently entering their 16th and 11th years, respectively.
In a statement posted to the Diablo III forum, the developer announced that they will no longer support World of Warcraft, StarCraft II, Diablo III, Hearthstone, and Heroes of the Storm on those platforms beginning later this year. A definite date was not provided by Blizzard as of the time of this writing.
With the release of three new Windows OS (Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 10) over the last decade, the company believes the majority of their player base has already upgraded to these newer versions of Microsoft’s operating system. Blizzard is currently planning for a staggered schedule (of which, again, there is no definite initiation date) to phase out Windows XP and Windows Vista support.
Windows XP is considered to be one of the most successful operating systems in Microsoft family. Despite Microsoft ceasing support of the OS back in 2012, its popularity had helped the OS live on amongst adopters. Furthermore, Windows XP has been widely considered the most compatible OS for older Windows-based games than later operating systems like Windows 7 and Windows 10.
Stay tuned to GameSkinny for more information regarding Blizzard’s roll-out plan for ceasing game support on Windows XP and Windows Vista.
