Today, developer Blizzard Entertainment announced that the Heroes of the Storm Global Championship (HGC) will not return in 2019. The announcement did not indicate plans to continue supporting Heroes of the Storm esports in any capacity.

“While we don’t make these decisions lightly, we do look to the future excited about what the decisions will mean for our other live games and all the projects we have in the works,” the announcement said.

Blizzard launched the HGC in 2016, supporting teams across North America, Europe, China, and South Korea with a large prize pool and a $20K USD salary for each active player. In 2017, the developer added a unique revenue share system to the league in partnership with Twitch known as HGC cheer.

Related Article: Blizzard Silent on Heroes of the Storm Pro League 2019 Season

Despite these efforts, the league was unable to gain significant traction both with viewers and esports organizations. Since the start of 2018, multiple organizations have left the HGC. While some prominent brands like Dignitas , Fnatic , and Team Liquid remained, many HGC teams were left unsigned at the end of the year.

Blizzard’s other esports initiatives for Hearthstone and Overwatch will receive increased support in 2019. The Overwatch League has expanded, adding eight new teams and an increased prize pool of $5M, while Hearthstone’s competitive system has been completely overhauled and had its prize support similarly increased to $4M.