Diablo 3 Delayed Until Early 2012; But Beta Extended

By Kevin Parrish
published

As Blizzard explains, why release a game that's almost ready?

Friday morning Blizzard Entertainment said that it has pushed back the release date of its highly-anticipated action-RPG PC game, Diablo 3. Instead of a Q4 2011 launch, the game is now expected to arrive on retail shelves and Battle.net in "early" 2012. The news isn't unexpected, but unfortunate nonetheless for those who were hoping to hack/shoot/electrify their way through the holiday season.

"With every game we make, the temptation is always very strong to launch as soon as possible. However, we didn't put so many years of work into Diablo 3 to release a game that was almost ready," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment. "The beta test is going very well, and we look forward to making the most of the extra time we're taking to deliver an experience that lives up to our vision for the game and the expectations of our players. Next year is going to be an incredibly busy one for Blizzard, and we hope an incredibly fun one for Blizzard gamers."

As indicated, Blizzard will use the additional time to extend the Diablo 3 closed beta test which launched earlier this week. This means there's a potential for additional players, and anyone with an active Battle.net account that has a Blizzard game attached to it (any Diablo, Warcraft and StarCraft title) should visit Battle.net account management to opt in for a chance to participate in the beta test.

According to Blizzard, additional testing phases, as well as further details regarding the launch plans for the game, will be announced on the company's Diablo 3 community website. In the meantime, check out the first part of our hands-on with the closed beta by heading here.

Kevin Parrish
50 Comments Comment from the forums
  • rh_dog
    Rats, I see this news on other sites too. Oh well, I hope TL2 comes out before D3. It will help pass the time. I wouldn't mind the delay so much if I got in the Beta for D3.
    Reply
  • Arkive
    Diablo 3 and Guild Wars 2 are actually just rumors created many years ago to tease us.
    Reply
  • fyend
    Who cares. It was totally underwhelming when I played the beta. All aboard the Blizzard hype train! Choo Choo!
    Reply
  • dontcrosthestreams
    i wont be playn this time around, they have squed the drop rates to make money off of chinese slaves. if there is to much of a good item it will stop droping, making it more valuable in their marketplace
    Reply
  • Arkive
    dontcrosthestreamsi wont be playn this time around, they have squed the drop rates to make money off of chinese slaves. if there is to much of a good item it will stop droping, making it more valuable in their marketplaceI agree. It would be much wiser to invest your time in basic spelling courses.
    Reply
  • Netherscourge
    Oh well.

    (Psst. Hey, RUNIC GAMES..... Torchlight 2 ready yet?)


    ;)
    Reply
  • dark_lord69
    - -
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    Reply
  • For some reason it doesn't bother me at all. I always expect this from Blizzard and have just learned to only get excited once they officially announce a release date (usually a month before it comes out).
    Reply
  • Slomoshun
    dontcrosthestreamsi wont be playn this time around, they have squed the drop rates to make money off of chinese slaves. if there is to much of a good item it will stop droping, making it more valuable in their marketplaceThen give me your key!
    Reply
  • AerieC
    gnookergiFor some reason it doesn't bother me at all. I always expect this from Blizzard and have just learned to only get excited once they officially announce a release date (usually a month before it comes out).
    Totally agree. I mean, I can see why people get upset over constant delays, but I'd much rather wait longer for a polished product than get something fundamentally broken or incomplete and wait for patches to fix it up.

    In the business world, I think it makes sense to get your product out fast to make sure you capitalize on the market, but games aren't the same as a revolutionary business product. Games are art. There's always a market for good art.
    Reply