The current COVID-19 pandemic forced many a convention to be canceled in 2020, and Blizzard's long-running BlizzCon was no exception. A digital free-to-watch replacement by the name of BlizzConOnline was created as a substitute for the traditional two-day event, which Blizzard has shared more details on.

　　BlizzConOnline will kick off from 2 PM PT/ 5 PM ET on February 19 with an opening ceremony that highlights upcoming game content, with the second day starting at 12 PM PT/ 3 PM ET.

　　The event will be split between six themed channels on day one, with each channel offering around three hours of content and deeper dives into Blizzard's games. On day two, fans can view Q&A sessions and player community spotlights in these channels.

　　Blizzard's annual cosplay showcase will also be featured, in a stream that will reveal the winners and outstanding entries of the long-running costume showcase event. The rest of the day will also shine a spotlight on the global Blizzard community, art contests, and exhibitions.

　　If you miss out on any of the streams, all of the events will be free to watch after they're posted in the BlizzCon video archives.

　　To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Blizzard Entertainment, which began life as Silicon Synapse originally under founders Mike Morhaime, Frank Pearce, and Allen Adham, Blizzard will also release Celebration Collections of in-game gear in the Blizzard Shop:

　　

The Essentials Pack

Moon-Touched Netherwhelp pet for World of WarcraftTracer's OSV-03 Rogue mount with Tracer Hero in Heroes of the Storm30th Anniversary Overwatch® player icon and spray (coming soon)* plus 5 Loot BoxesA set of StarCraft® II and StarCraft: Remastered portraits commemorating three decades of Blizzard (coming soon)10 Madness at the Darkmoon Faire™ card packs for HearthstoneA pet and portrait for Diablo III (coming soon)*

The Heroic Pack

Everything in the Essentials Pack, plus:Snowstorm mount for World of WarcraftRaynhardt (legendary) in Overwatch (coming soon)Random Madness at the Darkmoon Faire Legendary card in HearthstoneDiablo III wings (coming soon)

The Epic Pack

Everything in the Heroic Pack, plus:30 days of World of Warcraft game time5 Golden Madness at the Darkmoon Faire card packs in Hearthstone3 Golden Loot Boxes for OverwatchDiablo III Helm Transmog Items (coming soon)Blizzard added that a detailed schedule will be revealed closer to launch day for BlizzConOnline, with other anniversary-related activities taking place "during and around" BlizzCon.

　　Darryn Bonthuys on Google+