The arrival of Diablo Immortal and the confirmation that it is real “pay to win” (“pay to win, in English) cast a lot of doubt on the future of Diablo IV, the most important project that Blizzard has in hand right now, and one of the most anticipated games of the moment. Those doubts turned to fear when the developer said it plans to offer the game as a service and monetize it through micropayments.

Does this mean Diablo IV will be another ‘pay to win’? According to Blizzard, noand provided enough details to appease fans of the franchise, but the truth is, after seeing what happened with Diablo Immortal and how those responsible for said game actively and passively denied what was clearly a bunch of micropayments masquerading as a video game, I can’t help but but I maintain some skepticism.

Diablo IV will continue to run based on the seasons which we saw in Diablo III, which means that when the season ends, we will have to create a new character to enjoy the benefits of the next season. The previous character will remain active on our account and we will be able to play it in the off-season. Basically, the concept is the same as in Diablo 2 Resurrected, where we have a ladder mode and a non-ladder mode.

Free armor on the left, paid armor on the right.

And what happens to micropayments? They will offer season passes free content and “premium” tiers. The latter will be paid, but all content that can affect gameplay and character abilities, including experience boosters, will be limited to the free level, meaning that they can only be obtained by playing and that there will be no imbalance in favor of those who can and want to spend more money.

All Diablo IV micropayments they are said to be limited to aesthetic content. This way, some of the coolest armor can only be purchased with real money, and the same can happen with weapon skins. This approach is very similar to that used by games such as Path of Exile and Guild Wars 2, although the latter takes a more aggressive approach, as it also offers experience boosters and other items that, in exchange for money, ultimately make our lives easier, although yes. they do not create an imbalance in the game.

Diablo IV will launch sometime in 2023 and will be available on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series S-Series X, PS4, and PS5. The minimum requirements have not yet been met, but at that time we have offered you an estimate that we believe will remain unchanged, because at the end of the day, this game is still a title developed on previous generation consoles with all that entails on a technical level.