Diablo Immortal’s initial announcement was terribly awkward, both in form, but also in timing. As a result, the game has been afflicted by a bad reputation in the eyes of many players who see it as a bad April Fool’s Day joke, made by a studio, whose decline has greatly accelerated since. But that’s a bit of a hasty judgement, since Diablo Immortal turned out to be interesting, pleasant and quite rich during the various test phases, and it has many strengths that can make it a great mobile game. This could well be a very honorable addition to the license, and not just a way to wait for Diablo 4. It is also the opportunity for many players to discover Diablo. A few weeks before its release, we invite you to review some of the main points, and the biggest questions about it.
What is the PC and mobile release date of Diablo Immortal?
The info is still fresh, but let’s remember it for those who missed it: Diablo Immortal is released at the same time on Android phones, iOS (iPhone and iPad), and on PC, this June 2, 2022, a few weeks before the summer and vacation departures. It may seem sudden, after almost 4 years of waiting, but the game has already been entitled to several more or less mainstream alpha and beta sessions, it had to be released one day. If you plan to play on PC, you might notice that this is just a beta version of the game client on that platform. But that’s just because the dev team is still polishing it, it’s still the full game, and you’ll be able to play with mobile players.
Some explanations on Cross-play and Cross-progression
For those unfamiliar with these terms, Cross-play means that all Diablo Immortal players are grouped together, whether playing on mobile or PC. So you won’t have to worry about not being able to play with your friends. Combined with Cross-Progression, this means that by having a common game account on all your devices, you will be able to play Diablo Immortal from different locations and media, while keeping your characters and saves. You can play in transport, on your vacation spot, even at work (we know you) and resume the game where you left off in the evening, comfortably seated in front of your PC.
There is currently no announced console version. But since it is possible to play Diablo Immortal on the controller, it shouldn’t take too long, at least, we hope.
What type of controller can we play with?
The controls change depending on your platform, on mobile you can use thedefault touch screenbut using a gamepad is also an option. On PC, you will have the choice between the joystick (almost any type), and the keyboard and mouse combo. Plus, you’ll be truly spoiled for choice on PC. Indeed, you will have the luxury of choosing between old-fashioned movements, with the click of the mouse, like in the old Diablos, or with the ZQSD keys, which allows you to aim and shoot elsewhere while moving. .
What gameplay for the MMO-ARPG Diablo on mobile?
The simplest would be to say thatit looks quite similar to Diablo 3 in more ways than one, both in its artistic direction, its classes, its objects, and for the fundamentals of the gameplay. To start, you will necessarily need an Internet connection to play Diablo Immortal. The game is not much different from other Diablo games, it is a hack and slash, aka an Action-RPG variant. The fights are in real time, with a fairly fast pace. However, there is no need for breathtaking reflexes, nor an extraordinary level of play that requires performing combos.
It’s a fairly easy game to pick up, with smooth progression, requiring you to put together a hero with the skills and playstyle you like. You control this character in an isometric view (from above, but tilted), and you have to use different attacks, skills and spells in order to kill hordes of enemies, which brings in experience and different types of loot. You have to explore different areas, complete quests, daily activities, gain levels and improve your equipment. Depending on the activities in which you participate, the multiplayer aspect will be more or less present. For example, dungeons are made for 4 players, and raids for 8 players. But nothing prevents you from playing solo most of the time.
Content and types of activities
At the moment there is 8 large areas to explore in Diablo Immortal via a series of quests, with several dungeons to complete. It is difficult to exhaustively list all the available activities, but know that they are in line with what other MMOs do. There are daily contracts to complete, different types of rifts to complete in a limited time, events take place regularly in the different areas of the game. There is also an important PvP aspect, with battlefields, as well as a big factional war called the Cycle of Conflict. The principle is to reward the most successful clans with the title of Immortal, while the others try to steal their place through different types of confrontation, such as theft of treasures.
And it’s not fixed, the developers promise more content in the future, it remains to be determined how regularly the updates will arrive, and with what type of additions.
Classes available and role in battle
Upon release, Diablo Immortal will feature 6 classes that should be familiar to license veterans:
- Crusader: A heavy knight in armor, with a huge shield. He uses his sacred skills to defend himself and annihilate his enemies with flying hammers, celestial fire and the like.
- Monk: A martial arts specialist, with attacks also using his fists, his feet. He completes his arsenal with mystical abilities like the explosive palm, chain strikes and mantras.
- Barbarian: The savage brute par excellence, who likes to charge into the fray. This ferocious fighter attacks tirelessly with techniques like waterspouts, roars, big hammer blows, etc.
- Sorcerer: The arcane spellcaster, with ever-popular abilities, like teleport, disintegrate, or a good meteor in the corner of the face.
- Demon Hunter: An agile specialist in ranged weapons and traps. With a crossbow in each hand, ground spikes, swirling chakrams and volleys of projectiles.
- Necromancer: Finally, the master of bones, curses and death is also back. He uses his undead summons and doom spells to kill demons.
But beware, Diablo Immortal may be an MMO, it does not force the different classes to adopt a particular role. They all have their particularities, with group bonuses and control abilities, but there is not the trinity of classes present in World of Warcraft. This means that everyone plays DPS with different secondary roles, rather than playing tank or healer.
Loot and the Monetization Debate
The big question with a mobile title like Diablo Immortal is the economic model chosen by the studio and the publisher in order to make the game profitable, which can give the best as well as the worst. In the case of Diablo Immortal, it is a model Free-to-Play (F2P) that was chosen. We still don’t know what the final form of monetization will be on release, and what the prices will be, but we can rely on what was offered during the test phases to get a solid idea. You will be happy to know that there is no energy bar that limits activities, no absolute distinction between “free” and “premium” players. You can do absolutely everything and get everything without paying anything. There is no ads either painful all the way. Loot from monsters and chests is also not influenced by your status or premium bonuses.
Instead, the game opted for the model of the Premium Battle Pass, which offers various rewards in addition to players who only use the free Battle Pass. There is also a real-money store, which allows you to purchase various materials and components required for crafting and upgrading equipment. It is especially here that we can note a big distinction between the types of players, since putting your hand in your pocket allows you to obtain a special currency, platinum, available in very limited quantities daily, which allows you to buy legendary gems put on the auction house by other players. They are very important and offer a nice advantage at high level, as well as in PvP. It’s the “Pay to Fast” economic model, which can also be considered as “Pay to Win” in the very competitive context of PvP at high level. After all, the “best” player on the server is awarded the title of Immortal, complete with a special appearance, a place in the Hall of Fame, and various perks. Investing large sums in the shop in order to have the best possible equipment as quickly as possible is a great advantage in this competition.
If you don’t intend to participate in the competitive PvP and PvE aspects at all, or do so, but without particular ambitions or objectives, then the monetization of Diablo Immortal should not bother you at all. It then turns out to be very non-intrusive.
What PC configuration and what smartphone model to run Diablo Immortal?
Minimum configuration on iOS:
Minimum configuration on Android:
- Android 5.0
- Snapdragon 660 / Exynos 9611
- Adreno 512 / Mali-G62 MP3
- 2 GB RAM
Minimum configuration on PC:
- Operating system: Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Windows 10 / Windows 11 (64 bit)
- Video: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460, ATI Radeon HD 6850 or Intel HD Graphics 530
- Processor: Intel Core i3 or AMD FX-8100
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Resolution: Minimum display resolution of 1920 x 1080
Remember that you also need an internet connection, whatever your medium.