In Diablo, the gate to hell is usually somehow thrown open. And some would say that Blizzard doesn’t just do it in game. After all, as far as Diablo is concerned, the publisher has not only once encountered strong opposition to its monetization methods. Remember the controversial auction house from Diablo 3 – and let’s not even get started on Diablo Immortal.
Now, the studio has finally come to terms with Diablo 4 talked about it very specificallyhow the action role-playing game will be monetized and supported after release. It is repeatedly emphasized that there will be no Pay2Win.
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Diablo 4 Preview Video: It’s Looking Better and Better, But Can We Celebrate?
This is how Diablo 4 continues after release
In order to get people to spend money in the same game over and over again in the long term, these people first have to stick with it in the long term. That’s why it’s so important for Blizzard to support Diablo for years to come. In this case, the model is based on the season concept from Diablo 3 and Diablo 2: Resurrected. Seasons are scheduled to take place quarterly and provide the following content:
- Neuer Content: Each season should always bring new game content. It should be about new quest lines in which you get to know the world and its characters better.
- Neue Meta: So that the meta of Diablo 4 does not freeze, there should be a little movement in each season. For this, classes are rebalanced, new items are introduced, new Paragon boards are built and new glyphs are made available.
- Improve the game: In addition to new content, the gaming experience should be optimized with each season. It is primarily about new quality-of-life features and minor improvements.
- Live Events: The open world of Diablo 4 is designed to constantly offer dynamic events and new ones are added with each season. It also deals with planned events for a short time, like an invasion of drowned people.
- Season trip: As in Diablo 3, there is again a seasonal journey that you can complete with your seasonal characters. This is about overcoming different challenges each season and collecting unique rewards.
This is how Diablo 4 is monetized
Unlike Diablo Immortal, Diablo 4 will not be a Free2Play game. As a classic service game, however, it will still be possible to spend money in D4 as you please. At its core, Diablo 4 relies on two different models. It offers a season pass on the one hand and an in-game shop on the other.
First and foremost, in Diablo 4 we can spend real money on cosmetic items like fancy armor.
Diablo 4 Season Pass
The Season Pass co-exists with the quarterly Seasons described above. Here, too, it is possible for players to unlock new rewards by completing tasks. However, the pass is more of a mechanic that runs alongside. So as you play Diablo 4, you’ll unlock new ranks in the Season Pass and receive different rewards for each rank.
As is now customary in the service sector, the Season Pass is divided into two sections. A free and a premium route. For the premium track you have to spend money accordingly and then unlock even more rewards with each rank. The pass offers the following rewards:
- Cosmetic armor and weapons
- Premium currency for the ingame shop
- Experience Booster (Free Season Pass Only)
Due to the fact that the experience boosters provide a gameplay advantage, this reward is not available in the Premium Pass. However, it is also possible to use money to unlock automatic ranks for both passes. According to Blizzard, however, you cannot spend money on the boosters in this way, since you also have to earn level milestones.
Diablo 4 store
Diablo 4’s in-game shop should be relatively simple. Only cosmetic items can be bought here. None of them should offer any kind of gameplay advantage, nor should they be the most objectively impressive transmogs in the game. According to Blizzard, there are hundreds of such cosmetic items to be discovered in the game, and it’s not just the shop items that should look good.
This is the Diablo 4 shop. All items are purchased with an in-game currency.
It is also important to Blizzard that the shop remains transparent. In this way we always get exactly what we want to buy and can take a close look beforehand at how the desired piece will look on our hero. In addition, we can always attract an item once purchased to all characters – as long as they have the right class for it.
So much for the shop. You can find out how Diablo 4 will be in terms of gameplay in our big preview:
more on the subject
Diablo 4: How Blizzard is changing its action RPG
What do you think of Blizzard’s plans for Diablo 4? Do you see the danger for Pay2Win here again or do you think the shop and the Season Pass are a fair model? Write us your opinion in the comments!
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