It's no secret that Blizzard hasn't really been having the best time over the last few weeks, so to suggest that the company needs the upcoming BlizzCon 2019 to go smoothly would be something of an understatement.
Even before the entire #BoycottBlizzard fiasco kicked off as a result of the company seemingly shutting down gamers for supporting the Hong Kong protests, there was a lot riding on this year's BlizzCon - especially after last year's disastrous unveiling of a Diablo smartphone game.
If you remember, the reason so many fans got so angry about a Diablo smartphone game is because they were expecting BlizzCon 2018 to be the place that Diablo 4 would finally be officially unveiled. That was not to be, and much ire ensued.
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I think it's fair to say that the reaction to Diablo mobile was very much... over the top. What's really tragic is that some gamers got more angry about that than they did the current Hong Kong situation, which is... well, I can't think about that too hard or I'll need to go bang my head against a wall until I pass out.
The good news is that this year could be the year that Diablo 4 is finally, officially unveiled. Please bear in mind before we proceed that this is just a rumour, however, and that it's not Blizzard's fault if Diablo 4 doesn't get announced.
I'm aware most people who intend to overreact to a lack of Diablo 4 will ignore what I just said, but I needed to include a disclaimer for my own sanity.
To be fair, as far as rumours and leaks go, this one is looking pretty legit. The first claim comes from proven insider Metro, who has previously successfully predicted BlizzCon reveals before. They suggest that we'll be seeing both Diablo 4 and a remaster of Diablo 2 at BlizzCon 2019, which would certainly help people to forget about last year's troubles.
The second source is a German magazine called GameStar, which appears to have run an ad for a Diablo artbook which reads: 'Featuring over 500 artworks from Diablo, Diablo 2, Diablo 3 and Diablo 4'. That can't be a mistake, can it?
With everything else going on with the company right now, I'm guessing they're hoping that giving the people not one, but two big Diablo announcements will be just the thing to help calm these troubled waters. We'll find out for sure when BlizzCon 2019 kicks off on November 1.
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Featured Image Credit: Blizzard
