Diablo 4 lead confirms annual expansions for the game
Blizzard already confirmed multiple expansions in the works for Diablo 4, and general manager Rod Fergusson claimed they'll be released on a yearly schedule.
With Diablo 4 out, its first season having launched, and further seasons already planned, players continue to wonder about expansion content in the game. Blizzard Entertainment had already confirmed plans for Diablo 4 content expansions, but franchise general manager Rod Fergusson also recently shared when players can expect them to release. In a recent interview, Fergusson revealed that the plan is to launch expansions for Diablo 4 on an annual basis.
Fergusson shared details about Blizzard’s Diablo 4 expansion plans via an interview with Dexerto this week. It was there that he shared offhand that the plan is to launch expansions for Diablo 4 on a yearly schedule:
Source: Blizzard Entertainment
It was just barely after Diablo 4 launched that Blizzard Entertainment confirmed that there were multiple expansions in the works for the game. With Fergusson confirming that these expansions are set for an annual schedule, we now have a slightly better idea of when they’ll be coming. If the first expansion is a year out from the base game’s release, then it seems likely we could see the first Diablo 4 expansion in June 2024, a year after the base game’s release.
With that said, we still have a few seasons to get through on our way to a first Diablo 4 expansion. As we close out Season of the Malignant and prepare for the Season of Blood in October 2023, stay tuned for more news and updates as they drop.
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replyTJ Denzer posted a new article, Diablo 4 lead confirms annual expansions for the game
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so 3 "free" seasons then a paid expansion? That seems not so great.
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They're trying so desperately and obviously (all the way down to the way they name their seasons) to ape Destiny 2's formula, except they're nowhere near as good at it.
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Yea I don’t think they really know what they’re doing. Kind of explains why the end game is so bare bones at this point.
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https://www.shacknews.com/chatty?id=42069376#item_42069376
Sums it up well. End game of running NM dungeons is not a good end game.
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Damn, I totally forgot I was playing that game...
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They need to fix some fundamental issues with the game.
The lack of procedural generation and randomization in dungeons makes extended play very boring, especially coupled with systems that encourage the player to run the exact same Nightmare Dungeon repeatedly. If they have over 100 dungeons at their disposal, then they should all be in the key pool and the player should be directly rewarded for varying their play. Key affixes are deathly boring, simply acting as counters to particular builds (in a game that actively discourages respeccing).
Loot management is not good. The player is encouraged to individually pick up every piece of loot and manually parse its value. The legendary system encourages the player to keep a "wardrobe" of spare legendaries in their stash that can be harvested for upgrades later, but the stash is too small to adequately accommodate this. Playing alts in a season is non-viable as a result.
Game balance needs work. Builds with the most boring gameplay are frequently S-tier while builds with interesting gameplay are mediocre or worse. Numerous trap choices in the talent and paragon trees that are never used. A general lack of variety and downgrades from Diablo 3 equivalents.-
Agree with all of this. I wonder how much they are holding back for the annual paid expansion
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Diablo expansions are typically the best parts of the base game. That said, I worry the yearly cycle will not allow them to iterate and deliver the usual stellar experience their expansions deliver.
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it would be cool if their model was something like.... expansion1 = cheaper and less of an overhaul than a usual xpac, expansion2 = more $ but up to the regular expansion standards.
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