As far as snafus go, Blizzard kicking off their annual BlizzCon event with a reveal of a Diablo mobile game may rank pretty high on a list of great expectations being dashed to bits on the rocks of disappointment. It’s not as if Blizzard didn’t confirm that they would be showing a game in that devilish universe that wasn’t Diablo 4, but the general consensus at the time was that Blizzard was pulling a fast one.
Theories ran wild, numerous forum threads proposed that Blizzard would be introducing a Diablo spin-off on its main platforms and the expectation reached a fever pitch as BlizzCon kicked off with a look at Diablo Immortal for mobile devices. To say that the backlash received was harsh would be an understatement.
The thing is, mobile may very well be a big part of Blizzard’s future. Here is a platform that already exists in the hands of hundreds of millions of people. A userbase that is more than ready to give the Diablo universe a bash if the option presents itself. The question is, can Blizzard make a good mobile and retain its identity as a PC-first platform for its various franchises? New Blizzard president and head honcho J. Allen Brack believes so.
“We’re not going to become a mobile-only company. We are PC. We have strong roots in console from the very early days, but we’ve been a primarily PC developer for a very long time and that’s not going to change,” Brack said to Game Informer.
You know, a lot of us are very big fans and have the PC as our most favourite platform, and so PC is going to continue to be a huge part [of Blizzard]. Console has been a huge part in the recent Blizzard history with Diablo and Overwatch and now Diablo Switch coming out as well. We think those are great platforms for those games where it makes sense.
Mobile is a huge gaming platform. It’s the largest gaming platform. So can we create some authentic, cool Blizzard experiences on that device? We think we can. And we think it can be very cool. I’m excited to talk about or see a lot of how Diablo Immortal goes and how the fans react to it, and people who actually play the game, and then decide what the right next move is on our mobile future.
But we think the franchises, the characters, and the worlds that we have, we want to see them in a lot of places. We want to see them on mobile. We had a Warcraft film already. We’d like to see more. We’ve got books and comics and different kind of things that we’ve done. It makes me think that the franchises are large enough and are worthy to be experienced by more.
Blizzard’s future likely won’t rely on mobile platforms, but it looks increasingly likely that the path ahead is one that will see the developer look to co-exist with that hardware in order to remain relevant as a company. Expansion into other media, but with an eye on the roots that made Blizzard a household name with gamers in the first place.
Last Updated: May 29, 2019
Admiral Chief
May 29, 2019 at 15:39
https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/023/021/e02e5ffb5f980cd8262cf7f0ae00a4a9_press-x-to-doubt-memes-memesuper-la-noire-doubt-meme_419-238.png
Gr8_Balls_o_Fire
May 29, 2019 at 15:49
Just like diesel and electric will never be true sports cars, mobile will never be a true gaming platform.
Pariah
May 29, 2019 at 16:13
Tetris is a game. It can run on a calculator. If calculators were sold with games, it’d be a gaming platform. Yes it can also do math for you, but that doesn’t invalidate that it’s a gaming platform now (in this hypothetical).
I find this argument rather silly. Games are games. Mobile games, tabletop games, card games, PC games, etc. They’re all games. Let people play games where they want to.
R1ker
May 29, 2019 at 17:21
I agree with this. If you don’t like gaming on mobile – do what i did. Download the android emulator and installed clash of clans – so i am still gaming on my pc 😛
Gr8_Balls_o_Fire
May 30, 2019 at 11:43
Noting an exception to the rule does not disprove the rule 😛
Let us clarify what a game means to me and many others: something with depth, and that took actual thinking and effort to create, not primarily to make money but out of passion from its creators. This now excludes 99% of mobile games.
People can play what they want there they want, until I become president.
Pariah
May 30, 2019 at 13:44
That also excludes 70% of PC games and around half of console games. It excludes everything released by EA and Activision. Your reasoning is, simply put, stupid.
Gr8_Balls_o_Fire
May 30, 2019 at 13:44
You’re right, it does, exactly. But still not 99%.
I’m happy you find me stupid, if it helps you feel better. :*
Pariah
May 30, 2019 at 14:08
Now now, I didn’t say you were stupid. I said your reasoning is stupid. Please don’t jump from one to the other. If I thought YOU were stupid I wouldn’t actually bother replying.
Gr8_Balls_o_Fire
May 30, 2019 at 14:58
Now that makes me all fuzzy inside. But it does shed light on every other comment of mine that gets zero reply 😀
Pariah
May 30, 2019 at 19:37
Oh you utter… XD
WP, bastard. XD
Gr8_Balls_o_Fire
May 30, 2019 at 13:44
You’re right, it does, exactly. But still not 99%.
I’m happy you find me stupid, if it helps you feel better. :*
Zarrath (Zarrath)
May 29, 2019 at 16:02
Haha.. They said while inhaling after screaming “DO YOU GUYS NOT HAVE PHONES?!?!?”
Kromas
May 29, 2019 at 16:02
This after you can’t even enter Blizzcon without a phone this year.
Guz
May 29, 2019 at 16:27
Oh the irony xD
HvR
May 29, 2019 at 17:21
2019: Starcraft mobile coming to phone near you ….
justlikemo
May 30, 2019 at 06:59
yeh, you get to play with a pinky sized version of the queen of blades
justlikemo
May 30, 2019 at 06:59
it will be Diablo runner, where you get to play as a warrior, mash the monsters up, and get a giant monster chasing after you. with new character classes to follow on each update, like necromancer & demon hunter .