What drives someone who helped define an era of gaming to step away, and then return to build something entirely new? That’s exactly what Mike Morhaime, the co-founder and former CEO of Blizzard Entertainment, has done.
For decades, Morhaime’s name was synonymous with Blizzard, a company that not only made great games, but redefined genres—real-time strategy, action RPGs, MMOs—and built one of the most passionate communities in the world. But in 2018, he stepped down. And by 2020, he had quietlylaunched a new studio: Dreamhaven.
It begs the question: what drives someone who’s already done it all to start over? And what does starting over mean in an industry where monetization often overrides player experience, and creative culture strains under scale and business demands?
I spoke with Morhaime about his new venture, and how Dreamhaven is built on the belief that fun should still be at the heart of great games. The studio’s early publishing lineup spans everything from turn-based co-op to large-scale auto-battlers. But the common thread isn’t genre—it’s intention. Morhaime isn’t looking to chase trends. He’s betting on creators who have something personal to say and the room to say it well.
We talked about Dreamhaven’s approach to game selection, what Blizzard taught him, and how the business models behind the games we play shape experiences. We also touched on the legacy of “StarCraft,” a franchise Morhaime helped will into existence, and what it means to care about an IP you no longer control.
How Dreamhaven Chooses Its Games
Dreamhaven recently showcased four games—“Wildgate,” “Sunderfolk,” “Lynked: Banner of the Spark,” and “Mechabellum”—all of which are different in genre and gameplay. Is that variety intentional in Dreamhaven’s publishing strategy?
Mike Morhaime:We love a lot of different types of games, and I think the thread that connects all of these games is they’re all great at what they’re doing. They also happen to be multiplayer games—games that you can share with other people. We believe in the power of gaming to bring people together in positive ways and form connections, which is really what it’s all about. Things that you can share with others have a deeper meaning and impact on folks and their lives.
That’s not to say that we would never want to do a single-player game. There are a ton of awesome single-player games that we love to play. Even in those, I think there are opportunities to share your experience with others—sharing your strategies and experiences. We try to get a multiplayer experience when we can, when it makes sense for the games, and these four are all fun games to play with others.
When publishing third-party games like “Lynked” and “Mechabellum,” how hands-on is Dreamhaven? Are you involved creatively, or is it more about providing support?
Mike Morhaime:In the case of “Lynked: Banner of the Spark,” we were involved relatively early. We provided a lot of qualitative feedback, had folks playing the game, giving critical feedback, making suggestions.
In the case of “Mechabellum,” we discovered the game while it was in early access. It was already playable, they were selling it on Steam, and we just fell in love with the game. We were very impressed with the execution, the game design, and the feel of the game. So we were really excited when we had the opportunity to work with them and become the publisher of that game. We think it’s a gem that really hasn’t gotten the attention that it deserves.
You and your wife, Amy, initially chose to fund the company yourselves. Is bringing in outside investment something that’s currently being considered, or do you see Dreamhaven staying fully independent?
Mike Morhaime:We did bring in some outside investment. It was really important, though, that we maintained our independence and control of the company, so Amy and I still have control. We have a very supportive investor who really buys into what we’re trying to do here at Dreamhaven, and it’s been a great experience for us. I’m very careful about bringing in additional investment because it can complicate things.
Sunderfolk, The First Game From Dreamhaven, Has Been Revealed
We’ve finally gotten a reveal of Dreamhaven’s first game, a local co-op-focused turn-based RPG named Sunderfolk.
How Dreamhaven Differs From Blizzard
You and many others at Dreamhaven are former Blizzard veterans. Were there shared values—or even shared frustrations—that made building Dreamhaven feel like a natural next chapter for you and the team?
Mike Morhaime:Definitely. These are all people that I’ve worked with for many years, and were also very influential to the core values at Blizzard, and really focused on producing high-quality content as a business strategy, standing by our products, and trying to exceed player expectations. Heading into Dreamhaven, we were all very aligned in terms of our game development and business philosophies, and also our thinking about the kind of environment that we wanted to create, with empowered teams that really cared about what they were making—not only as a core business strategy, but also how we want to work, live, and interact with others.
I think we all take a long-term view in terms of value creation. We believe that making long-term strategic decisions—building value over time—is the right way to go rather than trying to front-load as much money as you may early on and then worry about tomorrow later. We want to win by building trust with our players so that they have a great experience with our games, to help evangelize that experience to their friends—help us spread the word. And when future games come out, they’re even more interested.
You just touched on player expectations. Do you ever worry about the weight of expectation—that Dreamhaven has to live up to a kind of “Blizzard 2.0” mythos? What do you want people to understand about Dreamhaven that sets it apart?
Mike Morhaime:I think we all feel the weight of that. I think we really want to achieve games and experiences that live up to those expectations. But I guess you sort of have to qualify that because we’re not playing with the same amount of resources as a Blizzard, or even any of these established companies with thousands of people and hundreds of millions of dollars—we don’t have that. We’re a startup. We have small teams. I think we’re creating really awesome experiences and making smart decisions and focusing on areas that really matter. But you’re not going to see 50 minutes of pre-rendered cinematics in any of these games.
What have you found developers value most when deciding to work with Dreamhaven?
Mike Morhaime:I think some of them like the idea of being in smaller teams and being able to contribute more directly. In a smaller team, they can actually get their hands dirty and create content and are involved in a lot of team strategic decisions. Smaller teams allow that. They allow people to wear multiple hats sometimes. So yeah, I think that’s part of it.
I also think there’s this thing that happens when companies grow and achieve a level of success. It sort of shifts from a focus on product creation to a focus on how you optimize the business. That can also kind of be at odds, I think, with the creative desire to experiment and innovate.
Microtransactions have become a key revenue driver in the industry, but they’ve also drawn criticism when implemented poorly. What’s your philosophy on them?
Mike Morhaime:Yeah, I mean we have some games that have microtransactions. “Mechabellum” has some cosmetics that you can buy. We launched a Premium Edition that includes some of those cosmetics at a discount. I don’t think people mind spending money as long as they feel like they’re getting value for it. I don’t think they feel forced to spend money on microtransactions to experience the game.
We aren’t big fans of selling power—things that make it an unlevel playing field unless you pay. We try to design a business model that feels good to the players. They should feel like they’re getting value for the game. But also, we think about the incentives that the business model puts on game developers. So, if you’re selling heroes, for instance, and that’s your model, then it’s going to incentivize you to focus on a pipeline of heroes that get released over the years—otherwise your business model is going to fall apart, and that may or may not be the best thing for the game.
I think you have to ask yourself, what does this game want to be the best version of itself? And then you want a business model that allows the developers to focus on things that allow it to be the best game.
In the case of “World of Warcraft,” the answer was a subscription model, at least in our calculus. We didn’t start off there. We started off thinking “World of Warcraft” was going to be a premium model. But when we thought about it, we’re like, “Oh, wait a minute. If it’s a premium model, then how are we going to compete with ‘Everquest?'" Which is getting this constant stream of revenue coming in.
They have a full development team constantly generating new content for the game. If we’re going to compete with that, we need a full development team constantly generating new content for the game. How are we going to fund that? Well, we need to charge monthly or something like that. I mean, there are other paths, but that’s the path we arrived at.
On StarCraft’s Uncertain Future
You once said, “I was there the day StarCraft was born as an idea.” I imagine that franchise still means a lot to you. With reports that Microsoft may be exploring licensing the IP, how do you feel about that? Do you still feel connected to what happens with StarCraft?
Mike Morhaime:I love that IP. I love those games. I love the community, the Esports scene. You know, I care a lot, and I’m in a position where I can’t really do anything about what decisions are made, and so I can just kind of hope that things go well. I mean, there are good versions of that future, and they’re really scary versions of that future, so I don’t know necessarily right now today if that’s a good or bad decision. I hope for the best and I care a lot.
Dreamhaven seems focused on creating original games—and the industry could certainly use more fresh IPs. But I want to entertain a hypothetical scenario just for fun: if Dreamhaven had the chance to license StarCraft, with no budget constraints, what kind of game wouldyoupersonally love to make?
Mike Morhaime:Oh, that’s a great question. I mean, if we had that opportunity, we would definitely get a team, and we’d start brainstorming a bunch of different ideas. I wouldn’t want to speculate just off the top of my head. I can certainly think of a few, but I don’t think it’s responsible for me to throw them out.
Studios Founded By Former Blizzard Developers Introduce Wildgate, A PVP Multiplayer Shooter
The debut game from Moonshot Studios, founded by former Blizzard CEO Michael Morhaime, is Wildgate.
What Truly Makes Games Great
In your opinion, what brings the most value to a game?
Mike Morhaime:I would say maybe fun and replayability. And fun is a complex thing, right? What is fun? There’s a lot baked into that. You’re trying to accomplish something, or there’s some sort of challenge that you’re presented with that you’re figuring out. There’s a progression that you are motivated to achieve. Balance is certainly important in fun. If it’s too frustrating or overwhelming at first, then that isn’t fun. If it’s not challenging enough, then it gets boring. But I would say players having fun and enough depth and replayability to want to keep coming back and experiencing the game.
Do you think the industry has lost sight of what makes games fun in the pursuit of monetization and metrics? How does Dreamhaven address that tension?
Mike Morhaime:I definitely think there’s a tension there. I wouldn’t go as far as to say the industry’s lost sight. There are so many very good games being made. I do think there is a monetization pressure that doesn’t necessarily produce the best experience for players even though it’s profitable. It’s sad to see. The only thing that can change is people voting differently with their pocketbook.
If Dreamhaven succeeds in everything it sets out to do, what will it have changed about the way game companies are formed and supported in the industry?
Mike Morhaime:To give the creators and the entrepreneurs a bit more confidence, that focusing on quality gaming experiences—even if it takes a little bit longer—can be a winning strategy. I mean, it’s really tough. There is so much competition nowadays. Breaking through the noise and getting noticed—there are so many things competing for folks’ attention these days. Not just games—everything. I’m not going to pretend it’s easy. It’s not, and I think we’re all trying to figure out how you break through.
How do you get attention? I don’t think there’s a magic formula. If there were, then we’d all probably be using the magic formula to stop working [laugh]. But I don’t know if there is one. I think games have to bring something to the genre. There has to be something special about them to get noticed. People don’t want to play the same game over and over. If they have a favorite game, another game that’s just like it isn’t going to pull them away. It’s got to fix some major problems that exist in the genre, and everybody is trying to figure that out.
If that’s true, I’ll have to question my sanity. I’ve replayed “Diablo II” endlessly.
Mike Morhaime:Yeah, what I meant by that is you don’t want to play clones of “Diablo II.” You know, if you love “Diablo II,” then you’ll go back to “Diablo II” and you’ll enjoy that game. But if somebody’s going to make a “Diablo II” clone, it can’t just be a clone of “Diablo II.” It’s has to bring something that it does better than “Diablo II,” that makes you go and say, “Oh, actually, imagine ‘Diablo II’ but with…” some innovation that is super awesome and exciting.
When you’ve got some downtime, what games—outside of Dreamhaven’s—are you playing for fun these days?
Mike Morhaime:I think the first game on my list, when I have time, is “Split Fiction.” We love It Takes Two. And right now we’re playing a lot of Dreamhaven games because this is a super busy year for us. There are a number of folks that are doing really interesting things. To be honest, I’m playing a lot of “Mechabellum” these days, and am really excited about “Sunderfolk” and “Wildgate.”
