blizzcon blizzard diablo immortal announcement youtube

We’ll be going hands-on with Diablo Immortal. Fans of Diablo have clamored for a massively multiplayer incarnation and it’s possible this new mobile game will serve what they’ve long desired.

Diablo Immortal is not only for mobile, but it’s a massively multiplayer online game. That’s a shame because there’s reason to be excited. The details of this announcement press pain points for Blizzard fans that won’t be easy for the company to deflect. It’s hard to say how this reception will change over time though frankly, we would be shocked if it thawed quickly. Blizzard has historically kept development of games in-house, and some players worry that Diablo Immortal won’t live up to the company’s high standards. This time, it appears Netease is actively involved with the development of Diablo Immortal, and several developers from the company made an appearance on-stage during the Diablo session. In the past, the company has helped with the Chinese release of numerous Blizzard games, which are quite popular in China. There is one more sore point, and that’s the involvement of Netease, a Chinese developer that Blizzard has partnered with for years. The Diablo franchise has always released on PC first, so the existing fanbase isn’t eager to play the next game on a smartphone. There was a palpable sense of disbelief and unease during the Diablo session, and the on-stage answers to questions did nothing to ease tensions. Even World of Warcraft fans have so far appeared amicable despite Battle for Azeroth’s problems. It’s not unusual to hear difficult questions from fans at Blizzcon, but usually, there are only one or two in each session. Diablo Immortal Q&A - Is this an out of season april fools joke?

Blizzcon blizzard diablo immortal announcement youtube