Blizzard names Walter Kong as SVP and head of live games and mobile development

• Kong will continue leading Overwatch’s strategy while also overseeing Hearthstone, Diablo Immortal, and Warcraft Rumble.
• He previously spent nearly four years as Overwatch GM and served as executive producer.
• Kong brings additional experience from Realtime Worlds and interactive entertainment consulting.

Blizzard has appointed Overwatch general manager Walter Kong as its new SVP and head of live games and mobile development.

As reported by Game Developer, he will continue overseeing Overwatch’s strategy while also taking on leadership of Hearthstone, Diablo Immortal, and Warcraft Rumble.

Kong has built a long career in games leadership and strategy. He spent nearly four years as Overwatch general and previously served as executive producer. 

Before that, he led product management, analytics, and business operations at Epic Games. Earlier in his career, he spent six years at Blizzard as senior director of strategic initiatives, contributing to Hearthstone’s leadership team. 

New responsibilities 

His background also includes senior consulting in interactive entertainment, and prior to that, he was SVP of business development and planning at Realtime Worlds, overseeing business growth and strategy.

"When I first walked onto the Blizzard campus as an employee in August 2011, I felt awestruck for most of my first day," Kong wrote in a post. “It was hard to believe that I had a job working for Blizzard! 

He added: “While I'll still be leading the overall strategy for the Overwatch franchise, I'm also excited to be taking on Hearthstone, Diablo Immortal, and Warcraft Rumble. 

“I am greatly looking forward to working with these talented teams across a wide range of initiatives, existing and new. Additionally, I'm committed to fostering an environment of continuous learning, collaboration, and growth for all of our team members."