When a popular game is released, and it’s both praised by players and sells well overall, developers will typically try and provide more content over time if possible. Some titles don’t “need” expansions or DLC, and then there are those that get them on the regular simply because they can or developers know fans will buy them up. Diablo IV was a title that many hoped would be good, and then it turned out to be so good that fans bought it in droves, setting record numbers in the process. So the question after launch was, “How long would Blizzard support it?”
In the past, they had done both expansions and frequent updates so that players could enjoy the game in the long run, and in a new interview with Dexerto, general manager Rod Ferguson implied that there could be expansions coming out every year:
“I mean, obviously, that’s like how long is a piece of string,” Fergusson not. “But, you know, it’s years and years. That’s the thing we’re focused on. When you look at the launch of the game and this first season, we see that as building a foundation on which we can build for the future. So, as we look at our quarterly seasons, and we look at our annual expansions, those are the things that we’re really focused on for our live service.”
The keyword here is “annual expansions.” It’s true that could’ve just been a “slip of the tongue,” but it also could’ve been a hint as to what is coming later. He also noted in the interview that they are always “leapfrogging” their seasons and expansions, once again stating that there are likely to be multiple expansions coming down the line. That wouldn’t be too surprising because Blizzard is having a victory lap right now with Diablo IV, and they don’t want it to end.
Don’t forget that the company hasn’t had a lot of wins recently, especially with the disastrous run of Overwatch 2 since its launch. Many fans were wondering if Diablo would follow suit and be another dismal sequel, but that didn’t turn out to be the case. With the money Blizzard made from the game’s launch, it’d be foolish not to attempt plenty of expansions to milk the fanbase and see how long they can keep bringing people to the game and then keep them playing it.
Only time will tell what happens next.
