Diablo 4 lead says there are currently 'no plans' to be on Xbox Game Pass
Diablo franchise general manager Rod Fergusson addressed rumors and demands for Diablo 4 on Game Pass, claiming it wasn't in the works right now.
Diablo franchise general manager Rod Fergusson said ahead of the Diablo 4 beta this week that there are currently “no plans” for the game on Xbox Game Pass. With Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard very close at hand, questions continue about what Xbox will pull into its Game Pass program, especially regarding games like Diablo 4. Unfortunately, until the deal is settled, it doesn’t seem like Diablo 4 on Xbox Game Pass is in the cards.
Fergusson addressed the matter on his personal Twitter on March 13, 2023. It was there that while he was happy to see enthusiasm was high for Diablo 4, there was no news to share on the Xbox Game Pass front, shutting down rumors that the game was already headed to the program at the moment.
“We’ve been getting some questions about [Diablo 4] on Game Pass and I want to let you know we have no plans for that,” Fergusson wrote. “See you in Sanctuary during the Beta Early Access weekend starting on March 17!”
Source: Twitter
Ever since Microsoft announced its intention to acquire Activision Blizzard to the tune of nearly $70 billion USD, fans and players have wondered about which Activision Blizzard games would make their way to Game Pass. If the past is any indication, Xbox would likely be cool with “All of them”. However, there are still plenty of matters to work out, including closing the acquisition itself. Nonetheless, Xbox and Activision Blizzard have caught no lack of scrutiny over how Microsoft would handle Activision Blizzard’s franchises and IP. Call of Duty has been one of the hot button topics throughout hearings, but Diablo still has a lot of star power in Activision Blizzard’s current lineup.
Nonetheless, Diablo 4 doesn’t come out until June 6. As we near the upcoming Open Beta this month, stay tuned as we continue to watch for updates on the Microsoft/Activision Blizzard deal, as well as word of Acti-Blizz titles on Xbox Game Pass.
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replyTJ Denzer posted a new article, Diablo 4 lead says there are currently 'no plans' to be on Xbox Game Pass
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Like the higher ups would tell him their plans.
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lol as if
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You're telling me they don't want to give away their crown jewel for free, when they could instead make a metric fuckload of money on Day 1 by selling full-priced copies that will literally be flying off the shelves?
Who would have thought. -
Once the acquisition goes through, "plans" will change rapidly.
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Not in this case. Putting Diablo 4 on Gamepass doesn't make any business sense. That shit is going to be printing money.
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The timing just doesn't work. Millions of preorders already sold and locked. If it suddenly becomes Day 1 Gamepass, what happens to all those people that already paid full price? They're pissed.
I think Diablo 4 Gamepass makes sense eventually, but not anytime soon.-
Microsoft will just refund them if the acquisition goes through before the launch. They've refunded things before
https://www.trueachievements.com/n51984/forza-horizon-4-5-bundle-refunds
https://www.pcmag.com/news/microsoft-moves-to-help-cyberpunk-2077-xbox-gamers-get-refunds
https://www.trustedreviews.com/news/microsoft-is-giving-refunds-to-xbox-game-pass-subscribers-4207622
If the acquisition goes through after launch it won't matter. Lots of us preordered DOOM Eternal and it still went to GamePass as soon as the acquisition went down.
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it doesnt make sense but its a good advertisement for gamepass to guarantee every 1st party game will be on
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If the Microsoft acquisition goes through it might be worth more to Microsoft to have it be perceived that "GamePass means all Microsoft games" than it would be for whatever sales they miss from the Windows/Xbox end.
That all said no matter what this is going to be their comment until/unless the acquisition goes through, lest it be any more ammo for Sony in court.
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Yup. Of course they aren't going to say that themselves, but it's pretty much a given it happens once the sale goes through.
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A mid level artist agrees. Tune in next week to see what senior QA thinks.
