Diablo 4 devs respond to microtransaction fears after Diablo Immortal backlash
In the midst of ongoing community unrest about Diablo Immortal’s pay-to-win elements, Diablo 4 developers have responded to concerns about microtransactions.
Since launching on PC and mobile devices earlier this month, Diablo Immortal has been met with contempt due to its overwhelming amount of microtransactions, many of which include pay-to-win components.
Diablo 4’s well-received showing during the Xbox + Bethesda Games Showcase eased the tension for a brief stint of time.
However, it did not take long for series faithful to begin questioning whether Diablo 4 would similarly be inundated with gameplay-affecting microtransactions.
Diablo 4 to include in-game purchases
Diablo 4 to include cosmetic-only MTX.Following Diablo 4’s gameplay preview during the Xbox showcase, Blizzard developers took to Twitter to address community concerns regarding in-game purchases.
In response to streamer Gothalion cheering on the absence of “mobile-style monetization,” Diablo’s Global Community Lead, Adam Fletcher, divulged that paid content will only include “optional cosmetic items and eventually full expansions.”
SVP and General Manager of the franchise at-large, Rod Fergusson, also chimed in, promising that Blizzard will anchor Diablo 4’s breadth of post-launch content around “optional cosmetic items and full story-driven expansions.”
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D4 is coming out as a full price game built strictly for PC/console audiences. The game is huge & there will be tons of content after launch for all players. Paid content is built around optional cosmetic items & eventually full expansions. We will be sharing more info soon!
— Adam Fletcher (@PezRadar) June 12, 2022
To be clear, D4 is a full price game built for PC/PS/Xbox audiences. We are committed to delivering an incredible breadth of content after launch, for years to come, anchored around optional cosmetic items & full story driven expansions. More details soon. Necro blog tomorrow!
— Rod Fergusson (@RodFergusson) June 12, 2022
Despite the reassuring words of Fletcher and Fergusson, those looking forward to Diablo 4 remain skeptical of the cosmetic-only claims about microtransactions.
The distrust makes sense when considering that developers behind projects such as Marvel’s Avengers previously insisted on cosmetic-only in-game purchases, only to add pay-to-win options at a much later date.
Given the severe backlash leveled against Diablo Immortal’s microtransactions, the wariness surrounding Diablo 4’s future monetization model hardly comes as a surprise.
But if Blizzard Entertainment can keep the in-game purchases to cosmetics and DLC expansions, the positive response to the recent gameplay trailer suggests Diablo 4 will serve as nothing short of another mega-hit for the company.