BlizzCon 2019 is just around the corner and though it looks like last year’s debacle still lives on in addition to the recent Hong Kong protest controversies, it looks like the team over at Blizzard are staying on track with what they want to show off to fans. Blizzard revealed last year that there were “several” Diablo projects in the works, one of them being the now-infamous Diablo Immortal, but now it looks like the team is gearing up for the official reveal of Diablo 4 thanks to a recent ad spotted in an official art book.
The Art of Diablo book is the usual hardcover collector’s item that Blizzard is known for and it’s going to be released to the public on November 3rd. According to the German Magazine Game Star, the upcoming art companion piece will feature art from “Diablo 1, Diablo 2, Diablo 3, and Diablo 4.” Considering it hasn’t been officially released yet and all we’ve had to go on is (credible) leaks, it’s that little bit of confirmation needed to push Diablo fans more towards excitement.
Though we’ve known a Diablo 4 announcement was coming “eventually,” last year’s perceived bait and switch – despite Blizzard themselves tempering expectations by promising there was no Diablo 4 reveal – caused a massive backlash with the “Do you not have phones” Diablo Immortal reveal. It begs the question, is the Blizzard community ready to forgive?
Despite Immortal featuring a narrative that many have been asking for, with it set to bridge the large gap between Diablo 2 and Diablo 3, long-time fans of the franchise weren’t pleased with the mobile-exclusivity. A large part of that is due to the Nintendo Switch port for Diablo 3 that debuted in 2018 and the news that there were multiple projects in the works for this series, many were expecting a full Diablo 4 announcement – despite Blizzard being very clear that wasn’t happening during last year’s BlizzCon.
The negative backlash went viral – fast – and though Blizzard mentioned that they were expecting discontent, they had no idea it was going to be to this extent. From the devs being booed on the stage, to other developers weighing in on the decision to go purely mobile, it hasn’t been an easy time for the team over at Blizzard.
What are your thoughts on ‘Diablo-gate‘ and how it all went down? Are you still excited to see what’s in store for the Diablo franchise or is it too little, too late? Join in on the conversation by hitting us up over on Twitter @PrimaGames!
