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Diablo IV developers allege mismanagement, crunch and disturbing creative decisions in new reportInternal June 6th 2023 release date unlikely without overtime
Internal June 6th 2023 release date unlikely without overtime
Current and former Blizzard employees have shared details of alleged mismanagement and crunch during the ongoing development ofDiablo 4. Speaking to the Washington Post under the condition of anonymity, the employees say that impossible deadlines, managerial indecision, and disturbing script revisions have led to employee dissatisfaction and high turnover.
Staff said thatDiablo IVhas an unannounced release date of June 6th 2023. Although this internal date has allegedly slipped several times already, one staff member at Blizzard Albany said that, “We’re at the point where they’re not willing to delay the game anymore, so we all just have to go along and figure out how much we’re willing to hurt ourselves to make sure the game gets released in a good enough state.”
The article charts the development of the game under several different leaders, from alleged indecision and scrapped work under director Luis Barriga and lead designer Jesse McCree, who both left Blizzard in 2021, to a lack of significant improvement under the current head of the Diablo franchise, Rod Fergusson.
Some employees who spoke to The Post were from Blizzard Albany. The studio formerly known as Vicarious Visions was re-branded and began contributing to development on Diablo projects in 2021. Last week, quality assurance staff at Blizzard Albanyvoted in favour of forming a union.
Publisher Activision Blizzard are currently the subject of a number oflegal actions,labour disputesand allegations ofworkplace harassment. Some of these disputes relate specifically to alleged conditions within Activision Blizzard subsidiary Blizzard Entertainment.
Earlier this evening, the US Federal Trade Commission opted to file suit toblock Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzardfor $69 billion.
Sources two days ago claimed thatDiablo IV’s release date would be revealedduring tonight’s The Game Awards. We’re covering the showin a liveblog, if you want to find out if that’s true.
