Diablo IV Developer Livestream Sheds Light on the Post-Launch Support
May. 10, 2023Diablo IV Developer Livestream Sheds Light on the Post-Launch Support
Diablo IV livestream on May 10th discusses the game’s seasonal post-launch support, as well as previews some cosmetics.
On May 10th, some key figures working on Diablo IV sat down together and held a developer livestreamas previously announced. The panel consisted of Rod Fergusson, Adam Fletcher, Joe Piepiora, and Kegan Clark.
Their discussion ran for about an hour, and their primary focus was what the post-launch philosophies would look like. They confirmed many things, specifically the seasonal model, the distinction between free and paid battle passes, and more.
Let’s dive back in right before Sanctuary reopens its gates for the upcomingServer Slam!
The release of Diablo IV in early June won’t mark the start of the seasonal model. Instead, Blizzard plans to kickstart the game’s season 1 mid to late July instead. The reasoning behind this is that they want to make sure the game is in a good place (perhaps technically and server-side) before unleashing the model. Leaderboards, which have been a staple since Diablo II, will not be a feature in the game’s first two seasons.
Seasons in Diablo IV will have an overarching “Seasonal Questline” that follows that period’s overall theme. Blizzard kept on reassuring viewers thatSeason 1 will not be zombie-themed, so it’s highly likely that it will be zombie-themed.
This seasonal quest will be an independent story in the Diablo universe and is said not to have too many influences on the main narrative of the world. Think of it as a world-building sidequest in a way. Seasonal quests will also orient the player on whatever that season’s new mechanic will be.
Accompanying this will be what’s called the “Seasonal Journey” which is similar to Diablo III’s Conquests. These will be some meta-objectives that the players need to complete in order to gain some set rewards. Based on the screenshot in the livestream there will be four “Chapters” which is basically a bucket of challenges that have to be done in order. There also seem to be three locked icons that may serve for endgame purposes.
It also looks like players won’t need to complete all of the objectives in a chapter in order to move on to the next. Chapter 1 lists 9 objectives in total, but players only need to finish 7 of the 9 in order to proceed. This will likely help players avoid certain objectives that they don’t want to participate in (like PVP).
We also get to see the Diablo IV Season Tab, which showcases that season’s themes as well as cosmetics. We already know about the80-hour BattlePass, but this is our first look at the interface itself. It was already announced that it will be split into free and paid tiers, with the former offering some minor character boosts in the form of “Seasonal Blessings” and the latter only containing cosmetics.
Seasonal Blessings (at least initially) will be XP, Gold, and Elixir Boosts as well as increases to material salvage chances. They can be purchased with a currency called Smoldering Ashes.
The free track will have 27 tiers, while the premium one will have 63. Each class will get about 2 full armor set cosmetics from the Battle Pass. Players will also get other non-gameplay-changing things like mounts and mount skins.
Each Diablo IV season will have a different “mechanic”. This will always be in line with that period’s theme, to keep things fresh. We do know that Diablo III had some minor yet impactful gameplay changes throughout its seasons, such as the newEndgame Meta-Progression, theEchoing Nightmare, or even massive follower buffs.
Blizzard didn’t name anything specific, but they will definitely be more impactful and change things more than simple balancing tweaks.
It also looks like players do not need to complete the campaign multiple times even in seasons. Just like in Diablo III, once your account completes the main storyline in any mode, all characters can skip this segment of the game. This doesn’t mean a level skip, as new characters will always start at level 1, but you don’t have to go through the usual motions anymore.
Players will also unlock their mounts at about level 30, as long as they’re reasonably playing enough of the main campaign. It’s story locked, but will be accessible to all characters once the account completes the relevant quest.
Seasons will be done in about3-month sprints. Blizzard also intends that there will be no downtime between Diablo IV seasons. Meaning Season 2 will start right at the time that Season 1 ends.
Be sure to visit theDiablo IV wikifor more on the game. We also have plenty ofBuild Guidesto mull over, giving you an idea how best to deal with theminions of Hell.
Auberon
Writer at Fextralife. I really like vanilla ice cream.
