Blizzard's next big Diablo 4 livestream will talk game's first Public Test Realm, huge loot overhauls, and Season 4
The next Diablo 4 Campfire Chat looks like one of the biggest so far, and it's not one you'd want to miss.
There’s a lot going on in the world of Diablo 4 at the moment, even if much of it seems to be behind-the-scenes rather than in the game we can play today. But that’s about to change soon, as Blizzard is looking to rekindle a link between game development and player feedback we'd forgotten about.
As recently revealed, Diablo 4 is getting its own Public Test Realm (PTR), and Blizzard chose a major patch to re-introduce one of its longest standing exercises.
The opening of Diablo 4's PTR, which has yet to be dated, comes ahead of massive changes to the game’s loot and itemisation systems, which are set to arrive in Season 4. Item affixes, item stats, and the Codex of Power are all set to receive big tweaks that promise to deliver a major overhaul to Diablo 4’s loot game - arguably one of its weakest aspects.
If any of that sounds intriguing, you’ll be happy to know that Blizzard is keen to tell us more, starting with the next Campfire Chat livestream. The developer is hosting a new edition of the less-formal show on Wednesday, March 20 at 11am PT, 2pm ET, 6pm UK.
This particular episode is going to be all about the loot and itemisation changes coming to Diablo 4 with Season 4, and how those will factor into the upcoming launch of the PTR. We also expect to hear more solid details - perhaps a date - about the PTR itself, which will be available only on PC through BattleNet.
The developer also said the Campfire Chat will bring us a first look at Season 4, which has become even more highly anticipated after the disappointment of Season of the Construct, the game’s controversial third season.
Hosting the show will be community director Adam Fletcher, who will be accompanied by associate game designer Charles Dunn, lead live class designer Adam Jackson, and associate game director Joe Piepiora. You’ll be able to watch it all unfold on Diablo’s Twitch and YouTube channels, ending with a Q&A as is customary.
Diablo 4 has had a string of missteps following the launch of Season 3, with a big delay to the Gauntlet and leaderboards, an underwhelming Lunar Near Year limited-time event and what felt like an deluge of exorbitantly priced in-game items in such a short span of time. Anyone who couldn’t get into the game’s current state has instead shifted their attention to Last Epoch, the indie ARPG hit that launched its 1.0 release right around the same time.
It’s going to be interesting to see whether Blizzard could get players excited about the future of Diablo 4 following the livestream.