Blizzard Confirms Diablo 4 Will Get "Annual Expansions"

Developer Blizzard Entertainment has long been a proponent of expansions. In fact, every game in its long-running Diablo series has gotten extra content in one way or the other (the original game used another developer for its Hellfire expansion), so it wasn't a surprise to hear that Diablo 4 already has two expansions in the works. But now, the developer is taking things a step further and saying that it is targeting "annual expansions" for Diablo 4 in addition to the seasonal content we've already been getting.

The news comes from a recent interview that Diablo 4 general manager Rod Fergusson did with Dextero. There, Fergusson was asked about Diablo 4's life cycle and how long he thinks it will go. He said, "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."

Previous Diablo games only ever got one true expansion, though Diablo 3 did get the Rise of the Necromancer pack which added a new class and quite a bit of content. With this new approach, it will be interesting to see exactly what distinction Blizzard makes between what's big enough for expansion. Previous expansions added brand-new acts and characters, so you'd expect the same with these, but Diablo 4's seasons are already adding new seasonal campaigns. Speaking of the seasonal content, this also means players will now be on the hook to buy four season passes a year and a new expansion if they want to keep up with everything Diablo 4 has to offer. That's not likely to be a cheap prospect for most.

However, if Blizzard is able to World of Warcraft-ify Diablo 4's expansion cycle, it will be a fun (if expensive) time to be a Diablo fan. Either way, we're getting closer and closer to the launch of Season 2 in Diablo 4, which will bring the Season of Blood to Sanctuary.  

When Does Diablo 4 Season 2 Launch?

Season of Blood is coming to #DiabloIV.

Join the hunt, October 17th 🩸 pic.twitter.com/m52KPZlGQr

— Diablo (@Diablo) August 22, 2023

Diablo 4 Season 2 is set to launch on October 17, which is the same day Season 1 ends. The next season will give players access to a new, vampire-centric campaign to play through, as well as all kinds of new and updated features. Blizzard hasn't given us the full rundown yet, but it is dropping a new deep dive in early October. Ahead of that, we'll be getting one last Season 1 patch that'll include several welcome updates to usher out the end of the season. 

Diablo 4 is available now on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC platforms.