Blizzard announces new Diablo for mobile and fans are not happy

While Blizzard hinted that Diablo news was on the way, the firm did its best to temper expectations surrounding a fourth mainline entry in the run-up to its annual BlizzCon event. Sadly, these efforts were in vain as the newly announced Diablo Immortal for mobile has become one of the studio’s most disliked videos.

With so many projects in the works, from a Nintendo Switch version of Diablo 3 to a rumoured animated television series by Netflix, it’s difficult not to get excited at what Blizzard has in store for fans of the series. Associate Community Manager Brandy Camel revealed that some of these projects are “going to take longer than others,” hinting that Diablo 4 or, at the very least, the potential of a Diablo 2 remake could eventually materialise in the future.

Blizzard even reiterated these points just two weeks ago, stating that while it knows “what many of you are hoping for, we can only say that ‘good things come to those who wait,’ but evil things often take longer.” Despite all of these warning signs, fans are still disappointed to learn that the first new entry is a pocket-sized spin-off called Diablo Immortal for mobile platforms.

The trailer showcases the Diablo 3-like action coming to Android, iPhone and iPad devices, even expanding on gameplay by introducing combat while repelling down a shaft. That doesn’t seem to have saved the upcoming title from ridicule, however as the video sits with a monstrous 111,000 dislikes in comparison to just 4,700 likes at the time of writing.

Fans might find comfort in the fact that Diablo Immortal is being handled by mobile specialists at NetEase, rather than one of Blizzard’s main teams.  More projects are confirmed to be in production, although it isn’t certain what they are or when they might debut. After all, fans did have to wait over 16 years for Warcraft 3: Reforged.

KitGuru Says: I’m personally not a fan of mobile gaming yet, namely due to questionable touchscreen controls and drain of already limited battery life. That being said, funding from the lucrative smartphone market will surely help the development of PC and console entries in the future, even if we have to wait a little longer. How do you feel about Diablo Immortal?

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