Blizzard has announced BattleTags - unified nicknames that identify players across all of Battle.net.

Your BattleTag is used in Blizzard games, on Blizzard websites and in Blizzard forums.

BattleTags are similar to the controversial Real ID system (but will not replace it), and gives players a new way to manage public profiles, find and chat with friends they've met while playing, form groups and stay connected across Blizzard games, the company said.

You can pick a BattleTag now through Battle.net Account Management and use it when posting on the Diablo 3 community websites, although most of the features are yet to launch. Your BattleTag is not unique, so multiple players can choose the same one.

What will differentiate your BattleTag, however, is a four digit BattleTag code, which combines your choisen name to create a unique identifier (Blizzard uses the example AwesomeGnome#3592).

Your BattleTag must adhere to the BattleTag Naming Policy and only one BattleTag can be associated with each Battle.net account.

Blizzard will test basic in-game functionality (including in-game chat and friends list support) in the next patch for the Diablo 3 beta test. BattleTags will be available to Diablo 3 when the game launches.

They will then be integrated into other Blizzard games, such as World of Warcraft and StarCraft 2, at some point in the future.

Blizzard launched a BattleTags FAQ, which reveals more information.