Diablo’s general manager Rod Fergusson has confirmed that the next expansion for Diablo 4 won’t be out until 2026. Despite previous comments by Blizzard and plenty of fan speculation, it seems annual expansions are now officially off the cards.
Fans of Diablo 4 will either need to make 2024’s expansion Vessel of Hatred last a little longer, or stop holding their breath and dive into another game like Diablo.
Reported by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier on BlueSky, Fergusson made the comments while speaking at the DICE Summit in Las Vegas. “In 2025, or just before Season 8, we will have a 2025 roadmap for Diablo 4,” he says. “Our second expansion won’t be on that roadmap, because our second expansion is coming in 2026, but at least players will have the road ahead.”
After Diablo 4’s launch in 2023, Fergusson seemed sure that expansion releases would be delivered yearly, but had started to backtrack by 2024, saying in a YouTube interview with GameSpot that “Our players deserve to have more content and more ways to play, but in terms of what’s the cadence and the right amount, it’s not something I can talk about today.”
Vessel of Hatred was also pushed back by around six months due to its unprecedented scope, which has had a knock-on effect for future releases. Even with a considerable delay, some fans were still left cold by the expansion’s abrupt ending and shorter story length, something Blizzard could be looking to correct in future. It’s also clear the roadmap is intended to provide eager players with advance notice of any major changes or consultations, though any promises should perhaps be taken lightly.
In our Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred review, which earned a 9/10 rating, Lauren speculated on what the future might hold for the world of Diablo 4, as the expansion had “recaptured the darkness of Diablo 2 while also modernizing it.” I guess we’re going to have to wait a little while to find out.
To keep things fresh before a new expansion arrives, be sure to check out our guide to the best Diablo 4 runes, or brush up on recruiting the best Diablo 4 mercenaries in the game.
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