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Diablo Immortal Is Coming To PC! World Wide Launch June 2nd!

Blizzard has announced that Diablo Immortal will be releasing world wide on June 2nd for mobile & PC! The PC version will be in Beta for the world wide launch; however, all progress will carry over. Diablo Immortal will have full cross-play / cross-progression between PC and mobile.

Originally Posted by Blizzard Entertainment (Official Post)

A battle for the ages draws near. The Burning Hells’ flames flicker and crackle in anticipation, an omen they seek to communicate—Diablo^® Immortal^™ is coming! On June 2, brave adventurers in most regions^* will take up arms against the demonic forces of Skarn, Lord of Damnation, as they uncover events taking place between Diablo II and Diablo III.

 

Community feedback has been imperative to the development of Immortal and has influenced the game in many ways, as you’ll come to see. One recurring piece of feedback we especially took to heart was the desire to play Immortal on PC. Well, we are most pleased to announce this has been made a reality—in addition to releasing on Android and iOS devices, Diablo Immortal will also be free-to-play for Windows PC upon launch in Open Beta.

 

This is an especially proud moment for us to announce, as Immortal represents a handful of firsts for both the Diablo franchise and Blizzard. Upon launch, Immortal will be the largest Diablo game we’ve released, home to more distinct zones, unique encounters, and satisfying ways to cut down demons than ever before. Immortal is also the first Blizzard game to be built from the ground up for mobile, delivering the same AAA demon-slaying experience you love but to be played from anywhere.

 

Lastly, Immortal is the first MMOARPG Diablo game—providing the opportunity to socialize, play, and explore the world freely with other players in ways never previously experienced across the Diablo franchise.

*Diablo Immortal will become available for some Asia-Pacific regions in the weeks following launch.

 

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DIABLO IMMORTAL ON PC

It is important for us to assure you that Immortal will deliver an uncompromised AAA mobile experience when played on Windows PC. To assure this, Diablo Immortal will launch on PC in Open Beta. What this means is that you will be able to take the fight to the Burning Hell’s legions on PC upon launch with full cross-play and cross-progression support. During the PC Open Beta period, we will continue to collect player feedback, make changes, and fine-tune this version of Immortal until we feel it delivers a finalized experience for all courageous adventurers. With that said, we have already made a few adjustments to ensure playing Diablo Immortal on PC feels seamless for Sanctuary’s defenders.

 

Wherever you may go, the opportunity to vanquish demonic invaders from Sanctuary shall follow—cross-play and cross-progression features between mobile and PC will make allying with other brave adventurers a breeze regardless of platform. When the PC version leaves the Open Beta period, all the progress and purchases you’ve made will be maintained.

 

Aside from ease-of-access, we understand that comfort is key, especially for those longer gaming bouts. To provide players with more ways to play, Diablo Immortal will host controller support for both PC and mobile. Since the Closed Beta, we’ve modified controller functionality so adventurers will now use a free-cursor reticle controlled with a thumbstick to navigate menus. To type messages in-game, a touch screen or keyboard will be required. Providing you with the most optimal experience when using a controller to protect Sanctuary is a priority of ours, so after Diablo Immortal launches, we will continue to improve controller support.

 

Additionally, the W/A/S/D/ directional keys may be used to move around the map for PC—a first for a Diablo game. And of course, you can still use mouse and keyboard to explore, loot, and keep Hell’s nightmares at bay.

 

For more information about Diablo Immortal on PC, visit our Making PC blog.

 

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HELLISH LAUNCH CONTENT

The time to assume the mantle of Barbarian, Crusader, Demon Hunter, Monk, Necromancer, or Wizard and fight for the fate of Sanctuary is closing in. As you ponder which class to walk the streets of Westmarch and beyond with, you may also be wondering—what dangers, or delightfully exciting challenges, will be available at launch?

 

As you progress through Immortal’s story, you’ll traverse eight expansive zones, each with their own hellish styles. But don’t worry, the gates of Hell have been left open for the potential addition of more zones and content. While taking in the sights and felling demonic hordes in your wake, you’ll stumble across dangerous live events where all battle-hungry adventurers on the same server can team up to defy the odds and claim victory over the Burning Hells. And once you’re ready to tackle the Helliquary, our eight-player raid experience, you’ll be delighted to know formidable foes and alluring loot await, with more to come across monthly free content updates.

 

Adventurers, we would like to thank you for your feedback across past Diablo Immortal Alphas and Betas. Much of which the Diablo Immortal team has used to make changes that will help provide the best playing experience possible. We cannot wait for you to heed the call on June 2!

 

If you want to learn more about Diablo Immortal or pre-register, check out our website, or for real-time updates, follow our official Twitter.

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FAQ

Q. What are the differences between PC Open Beta and Mobile?

A: The main differences between playing Diablo Immortal on PC in Open Beta and Mobile will be seen in the UI and controller functionality. As we adjust these aspects during the PC Open Beta, they may create slight differences in the gameplay experience, but you can be assured that our intention is to replicate the same AAA experience on mobile for PC.

 

Q. What will happen to my progress and purchases in the PC Open Beta?

A: When the PC version leaves the Open Beta period, all the progress and purchases you’ve made will be maintained.

 

Q. What do we plan to improve for PC?

A: During the PC Open Beta period, we will continue to collect player feedback, make changes, and fine-tune Immortal for PC until we feel it delivers a finalized experience for all courageous adventurers.

 

Q. Which countries will Diablo Immortal become available for in late June?

A: Diablo Immortal will become available for the following Asia-Pacific regions later in June on PC and mobile: Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macao, Malaysia, The Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. Diablo Immortal will also be available in Vietnam on PC only during the same time.

 

Q. How will cross-play and cross-progression function between PC and mobile?

A: If you start playing Diablo Immortal on PC, you will first need to create an account on Battle.net or sign into your existing account. Alternatively, if you start playing Diablo Immortal on mobile, you may either sign in to your Battle.net account or you will be supplied a guest account. If you have a Battle.net account, then you will be able to seamlessly transfer in-between playing on either platform simply by logging into your Battle.net account.

Originally Posted by Blizzard Entertainment (Official Post)

You asked, and we delivered! The team is proud to announce that Diablo Immortal will launch simultaneously on mobile and in Open Beta on PC—complete with cross-play and cross-progression. We have gone the extra mile to preserve major elements of the iconic Diablo control scheme so that you can slay monsters in the comfort of your own home chair.

A BRIEF HISTORY

The decision to develop Diablo Immortal for PC was one that the team went back and forth on for a large part of the development process. On one hand, we felt that we wouldn’t be doing the title justice by releasing a game originally designed for mobile on PC; on the other hand, we wanted to make sure the game reached as many players as possible—especially our most dedicated PC fans. In the end, the deciding factor was that we knew many of you would attempt to play this game through an emulator, thus leading us towards building a better experience. So stay awhile and listen as we delve into more details on the PC version of Diablo Immortal.

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A DIABOLIC CONTROL SCHEME

FAMILIAR TOOLS

To stay true to the Diablo experience, we meticulously translated the finger tapping and swiping controls from mobile into the age-old mouse and keyboard. Much like previous Diablo titles, you’ll be left-clicking to move your character and attack monsters while pressing keys to perform abilities and drink potions.

Keyboard button mapping options for PC.

 

The quest to determine our default control scheme involved many rounds of feedback from playtest sessions.We tried several alternative setups that didn’t quite hit the mark, and ultimately opted to return to the classic layout with some minor adjustments.

NEW TO THE ARSENAL

While not a part of Diablo’s history, we decided to include W/A/S/D directional controls as an additional movement tool. The reason behind this choice was that we felt it was an intuitive way to move your character around, instead of relentlessly left-clicking for both moving and attacking. In addition, moving while attacking simultaneously, such as with certain charged abilities, is native to the game on mobile and we wanted you to be able to do this too. A simple mouse control scheme would not have allowed for these operations

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On PC, W/A/S/D can be used to move your character around.

 

In the end, we felt that this was the correct scheme to give you the classic Diablo feeling, while also injecting some new options for you to experiment with. The controls should feel familiar and natural to ARPG players. And if you don’t prefer our scheme, we have included the ability to rebind controls to your personal preference. Pummel monsters in whichever way you see fit!

CONTROLLER SUPPORT

For all of the console gamers out there, we have included controller support for PC! The behaviors will mimic the mobile version—detection will be a seamless experience and many controls will be remappable to your liking as well.

 

 

 

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IMMORTALIZING THE USER INTERFACE

SCALING THE HUD

Diablo Immortal was built for mobile first, meaning UI elements tend to be larger while accommodating phone screen sizes. Scaling down the HUD was one of our first priorities—we want you to be able to see the game while also not accidentally clicking on the UI! And so, we have properly shrunk the portrait, mini map, top-level menu buttons, and ability icons to a comfortable size, maximizing your viewport for action.

 

HUD elements have been scaled down to an appropriate size for PC.

 

MENU INTERFACES

We wanted to simultaneously ship mobile and PC to start building the cross-play MMO community together. This meant that keeping the interfaces intact across both platforms was extremely important, even if slightly large for the desktop experience. While there will not be many behaviors custom tailored for desktop, and some menu interactions may resemble their mobile counterparts, we made sure to include hotkeys for all major functions, eliminating the need to manually click each function.

Menu interfaces will keep mobile scaling.

CHAT EXPERIENCE

All Blizzard desktop games come with the expectation of having a fully-functional chat system, integrated with all of Battle.net’s bells and whistles. We have gone to great lengths to ensure that Immortal is no different.

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PARTING THOUGHTS

Diablo Immortal on PC is an experiment from Blizzard. We didn’t originally plan to put this game on desktop—but as soon as it became a possibility, we knew we had to take the time to make it happen. If you’re a longtime Diablo player, the result will feel a little different from other PC Diablo games—but we’re extremely excited about clicking Immortal’s demons dead with our mouse, and we hope you will be too. We understand that many of you are seasoned PC veterans, and we want to arm you with familiar tools as you journey back through Sanctuary. This is a thank you letter from Blizzard, and we hope to see you all in hell when PC enters Open Beta in June!