The news
Diablo IV, the latest iteration of a video game franchise that has won millions of fans in over 25 years, has broken internal records for its publisher Blizzard, surpassing $666 million in sales since its debut on June 6.
The game combines elements of different parts of the franchise, from the dark and gothic atmosphere of battling demons to an always-online approach where players can connect with both friends and strangers to battle monsters.
The $666 million revenue markup is a nod to the game’s demonic themes.
Rod Fergusson, general manager of Diablo and senior vice president at Blizzard Entertainment, attributed the initial success to the company’s willingness to work across platforms while embracing different features of today’s games and the older features of the franchise .
“We were really trying to reach the younger audience,” Mr Fergusson said in an interview. The company was less concerned about persuading older fans accustomed to the earlier Diablo games to buy the latest version, he said. “If you pay attention, you’ll see it in our marketing,” added Mr. Fergusson.
Blizzard enlisted pop stars like Halsey, SUGA, and Billie Eilish to promote songs and launch trailers early on social media.
Since its release, users have played the game for over 276 million hours. It was #1 in Twitch streams for the first nine days of June during the game’s early access window.
Why it matters: It’s a win after a tough time for the company.
Founded in 2008 after the merger of Activision and Blizzard, Activision Blizzard has had a rough few years.
The Federal Trade Commission has taken action to halt Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of the company. The deal has been challenged in other countries as well, with regulators claiming potentially anti-competitive consolidation could hurt the future of the video game industry. (Microsoft and Activision Blizzard are fighting the challenge.)
Activision Blizzard has also faced employee unrest and a lawsuit related to claims of a “frat boy” culture that resulted in discrimination against women in the company. And in 2021, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick said the company will spend $250 million over the next five years to hire more women and improve diversity.
Background: Blizzard has had problems launching games.
Despite its popular catalog of titles like World of Warcraft, Starcraft, and Overwatch, Blizzard has had trouble launching its major properties and franchises. Most recently, it struggled with the launch of Overwatch 2. Players were upset about early technical issues and fundamental changes in the way the game was played.
Compared to previous titles, the launch of Diablo IV seems to have gone well. Only a few hiccups occurred with some longer loading times due to the high demand to play the game.
It also earned a free – if unexpected – boost in promotion last week, after a tweet featuring a photo of a billboard promoting Diablo IV in Manhattan went viral. After smoke from Canadian wildfires turned the city’s skyline orange, the billboard’s message took on a new, ominous meaning.
The message: “Welcome to hell, New York.”
