The Lead Game Designer of Diablo Immortal explains why Blizzard didn’t show anything of Diablo Immortal on the big stage. They wanted to leave the show to Diablo 4, says the Lead Game Designer. Diablo Immortal is not finished yet, a release date is not known.
Who is speaking? This is Wyatt Cheng, he is the Lead Game Designer of Diablo Immortal. He became known to a large audience when he said: “Don’t you guys have phones?” at BlizzCon 2018.
He said this when fans booed him after it became clear that Diablo Immortal would only be released for iOS and Android, but not for PC.
This brief moment became a meme symbolizing the “new, stupid Blizzard” that prefers to make mobile games rather than cool PC titles and seemingly does not take fans’ concerns seriously.
An ungrateful role for Cheng.
What happened with Diablo Immortal at BlizzCon? The hype on the big stage of BlizzCon 2019 belonged to titles like the new Diablo 4 or Overwatch 2. Nothing was seen or heard of Diablo Immortal during the presentation.
However, there was an update on the homepage. This presented new features for Diablo Immortal. Additionally, Diablo Immortal was playable as an expanded demo at BlizzCon. And there was a new trailer.
Blizzard wanted to leave the big stage to Diablo 4
Why wasn’t it shown on stage? Cheng explains this in a post on reddit. Many people have asked him why Diablo Immortal wasn’t on the main stage.
Cheng says:
- They wanted to clearly present Diablo 4. No confusion should arise about the story and features between Diablo 4 and Diablo Immortal
- But Diablo Immortal was at BlizzCon. The demo was played by “thousands of people”. The demo now featured the Demon Hunter as a new class
Diablo Immortal not finished – No release date yet
This is what Cheng says about the release date: Cheng says many have asked him about the release date. They have heard the rumor that Diablo Immortal is already finished. But this rumor is false.
They are now in the middle of development and will provide more information “in the coming months”.
They want to take the time to get the game right.
“Do you actually have a phone?”
This is what Cheng says about his personal role: Furthermore, Cheng was often asked at BlizzCon, “if he has a phone.”
He says: Joking aside, the announcement at BlizzCon 2018 was tough, but in the community on reddit there are people who really support the game. The whole team of Diablo Immortal loves playing on PC, Mobile, and Console.
They want to create an “authentic Diablo game”.
