Diablo Immortal: Release postponed, Blizzard listens to player feedback

Diablo Immortal: Release postponed, Blizzard listens to player feedback

Diablo Immortal

Until recently, Blizzard Entertainment had planned to release the mobile action RPG Diablo Immortal later this year. But the fans have to be patient a little longer for better or worse than previously thought, because the developers have decided to postpone the release.

As Blizzard explains in a current status update, the team wants the feedback implement the previous test runs and make numerous improvements to some of the gameplay aspects. However, this takes more time, so a release in 2021 is excluded. Instead, the developers are aiming for release in the first half of 2022.

"Using the feedback from the closed alpha, our team is fine-tuning both the core elements of the game and its long-term content. For example, we're working on the cycle of conflict and other PvP content to make it more accessible to all. We're also looking at how we can make PvE elements like The Reliquary of Hell more sophisticated. For those who want to experience our game in a slightly different way, we're trying We want to support controllers as well. These changes and new options for improved gameplay are not, as we have already told you, feasible within this year. So we are targeting the first half of 2022 as the release period. So we can still improve many features of the game. "

Blizzard wants to use the additional time, among other things, to install further PvE raids, to optimize PvP and to be able to offer full controller support. The team also wants to work on the progress system again. However, there has not yet been a specific release date.

Source: Blizzard Entertainment




'Diablo Immortal' has been postponed until 2022

Diablo Immortal may be a game for tiny screens, but that doesn't mean it's a small feat of development. For precisely this reason, Activision Blizzard has delayed the release of Diablo Immortal to early 2022. 


The action RPG was originally supposed to hit iOS and Android devices this year, but developers need more time to fine-tune PvP content, improve PvE experiences and implement additional accessibility options, according to Blizzard. Here's how developers put it in their blog post:


Following feedback provided by test participants of the Closed Alpha, our team has been tuning core and endgame features. For example, we’re iterating on PvP content like the Cycle of Strife to make it more accessible, alongside late-game PvE content like the Helliquary to make it more engaging. We’re also working to provide controller support for those who want to play our game in a different way. However, these changes and additional opportunities to improve our gameplay experience will not be realized in the 2021 timeframe we had previously communicated. So, the game is now planned for release in the first half of 2022, which will allow us to add substantial improvements to the whole game.


Blizzard goes on to describe specific features it'll focus on, such as adding PvE Raids, adjusting Bounties and making Challenge Rifts more exciting. In terms of PvP adjustments, Blizzard will work on improving matchmaking, earning rankings, class balance, time to kill and other elements of the Battleground system, plus it'll spit-shine the Cycle of Strife endgame content. All of this joins a raft of changes to progression and XP caps.


It seems developers are still in the early stages when it comes to getting Diablo Immortal to play nice with gamepads.


'We're still working through the challenges of adapting the touch screen controls to a controller seamlessly,' the blog reads. 'Making our game more accessible is top of mind, and we’ll share more progress on this front as we approach the beta in the future.'


Blizzard has other things on its plate right now, too. Activision Blizzard is facing a sexual harassment and gender discrimination lawsuit from the state of California, and Blizzard president J. Allen Brack left the company today amid allegations that he overlooked abuse in the workplace for years. Blizzard's head of HR, Jesse Meschuk, also left the studio this week. A second lawsuit was filed by shareholders today, claiming Activision Blizzard failed to disclose potential regulatory issues related to the company's discriminatory, frat-house-style culture.


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