Outrage Erupts Among Diablo Fans Over Unexpected Call of Duty Crossover

Highlights

Diablo 4's controversial Patch 1.1 and Season of the Malignant caused many players to leave the game, leading to a significant drop in viewership on Twitch.

Fans are expressing disappointment with both the upcoming Season of Blood and Diablo's Call of Duty crossover. They believe that Inarius and Lilith do not fit well within the FPS franchise and argue that this kind of content is unnecessary when the current Diablo game requires more updates. However, Diablo 4 players remain hopeful that Blizzard will restore the game's reputation with a future expansion pack, drawing inspiration from the successful recovery of Diablo 3 following its problematic release.

The crossover between Diablo 4 and Call of Duty lacks compatibility both in terms of artistry and gameplay. This has led to discontent among certain players within the Diablo community. Despite a successful launch for Diablo 4, the initial excitement quickly faded, and fans began demanding quality-of-life improvements that were lacking in the game. The introduction of Patch 1.1 and the Season of the Malignant resulted in many players leaving the game, causing a drastic decline in viewership on Twitch.

On October 17, Diablo 4's Season of Blood will be released. It aims to address some itemization issues by implementing changes to resistances and slot-free gems. However, some fans view this as more of the same as the previous season, and believe that simply adding a stash filter is not enough to improve the overall gameplay experience. They feel that Diablo 4's endgame still falls short in delivering the satisfying gameplay loop seen in Greater Rifts from Reaper of Souls.

Activision has introduced Inarius and Lilith as playable skins in the Call of Duty franchise, alongside Skeletor and Spawn in Modern Warfare 2. Some players, like razbouz, have expressed their dissatisfaction with the crossover on Reddit, jokingly stating that Call of Duty has more Diablo content than Diablo 4. On the other hand, some Diablo 4 players find the crossover conceptually amusing and choose to see the situation in a more positive light. Although Diablo 4 may have disappointed many fans, it's worth noting that previous Diablo games have also faced challenging times. Diablo 3, for example, had a difficult start but was able to shine after an expansion pack significantly improved its itemization and endgame. Therefore, one could argue that the road to success for Diablo 4 might not be as steep in comparison.

BlizzCon 2023 is rapidly approaching, and with Diablo 4 adopting the live service model, it's highly likely that the first expansion pack will be unveiled during the opening presentation. As players increasingly demand significant changes in Diablo 4 that go beyond seasonal content or patches, Blizzard is in a prime position to once again restore faith in the Diablo franchise by releasing an expansion that addresses its shortcomings. While it remains uncertain if history will repeat itself, Diablo 4 players should definitely mark November 3 on their calendars. Diablo 4 is currently available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.