It turns out that Blizzard isn't going to ditch the Battle.net name from its multiplayer matchmaking and digital distribution tool, though it is going to modify it slightly. The new name moving forward will be "Blizzard Battle.net," not just one or the other.
Earlier this year Blizzard made a monumental announcement. After more than two decades of use, the Battle.net name for its matchmaking and backend download platform was going to be retired. Believing it created confusion among new Blizzard gamers who were unaware of the platform's history, it made it clear that it wanted to move to a more unified naming system. In its stead, Battle.net would become the Blizzard App instead.
However, it turns out that that move simply created more confusion than it was worth. Much like Blizzard's desire to avoid confusion over the name for new fans, old ones were confused by the new naming idea. As PCGamesN points out, Blizzard has a bit of a history with name changes creating problems, so it's decided to find a middle ground that works for everyone.
"Battle.net is the central nervous system for Blizzard games and the connective tissue that has brought Blizzard players together since 1996," Blizzard explained. "The technology was never going away, but after giving the branding change further consideration and also hearing your feedback, we’re in agreement that the name should stay as well. Take it from the developer formerly known as Silicon & Synapse, and Chaos Studios, names are important too."
It will now be known as the Blizzard Battle.net, though perhaps this will act as some measure of a transitionary name and we'll see it become the Blizzard App in the future.
