The release date for Diablo 4 Season 1 has been revealed, along with the new content that will be included in the update.
As reported by The Mirror, details about the Battle Pass were set out in a live stream by developers Activision Blizzard last night - July 6. Associate game director Joseph Piepiora and lead game producer Timothy Ismay explained the changes, which have been highly anticipated.
Some gamers were “furious” with the proposal by developer Rod Fergusson to create a completely new character to access some of the seasonal features. However, a similar system was present in Diablo 3 as well as other action role playing games (ARPGSs) and the developers are pressing ahead with the changes. Here is everything you need to know about the update.
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Release date
The official Diablo 4 Season 1 release date is Thursday July 20, as confirmed on the stream broadcast live on the Diablo YouTube channel. That means you only have to wait two weeks to get started in Diablo 4's debut season, whereby the world of Sanctuary stays somewhat familiar but is also suffering from a state of corruption. The new Diablo 4 season will roll out across PlayStation, Xbox and PC at the exact same time, but that time is yet to be confirmed.
New content
After previously teasing the theme of corruption in a tweet earlier in the day, Piepiora and Ismay were generous in explaining all the ways Diablo 4 Season 1 will change the map for both new and current players. The season's name was finally revealed to be called Season of the Malignant.
It depicts events that take place after the main Diablo 4 campaign and the main change is that enemies essentially have the chance to transform into a malignant version of themselves that is stronger and more powerful. This will reward you with malignant hearts.
Malignant enemies, hearts and powers act as the main new way players will interact with Diablo 4 Season 1 – it's not an expansion but rather a slew of additions. There are 32 malignant powers included in the debut season in total, whereby players can place a malignant heart into different pieces of gear in order to enhance them.
They can only be inserted into infested sockets of a specific colour. Also new are Invoker events, where players have the option to invoke the malignant that gives them the opportunity to farm the specific type of malignant heart colour they need for the gear they have equipped. If you get to the end of the tunnel during an Invoker event, you can connect it with an outgrowth, which will then generate a monster you'll need to defeat in order to be rewarded.
The developers were clear in stating once again that the Battle Pass and Seasonal Journey, which comes as part of the new season, will only be accessible for players who have beaten the campaign and create a new character. Entering the Seasonal Realm allows them access to the seasonal objectives needed to earn the Favour required to unlock all 100 tiers of the battle pass.
New Legendary items, new bosses and new Unique items were also confirmed to be showing up in Diablo 4 outside of the Seasonal Journey. This means they can also be enjoyed by players still in the Eternal Realm who don't want to enter the Seasonal Realm – i.e players who either haven't beat the main campaign yet or don't want to start a new character build.
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