Players spend $10 million a month buying skins in Diablo 4
Microtransactions and in-game shops in full-price games are some of the things gamers complain about most in modern video games. How players vote with their wallets, however, is usually a different story. This is also the case in Diablo 4.
Criticism of microtransactions in Diablo 4
After the release, developer Blizzard had to endure a lot of criticism for its game about Lilith and her minions. In addition to a boring endgame, the in-game store was also a recurring topic. This is where cosmetic items are sold for real money. Although they have no influence on the gameplay, many gamers believe that such a shop has no place in a full-price game.
While the waves surrounding the game itself were calmed down over time and a few patches, digital items such as horse armor for the equivalent of just under 60 euros caused a lot of trouble. A look at the revenue generated in this way shows why Blizzard and many other developers are happy to accept the negative reactions from large parts of the player base.
Revenue proves Blizzard right
Because how Game pressure reported that Diablo 4 is said to be bringing in 10 million US dollars a month with its digital armor and weapon skins. In total, that’s around 150 million US dollars since the action RPG was released last summer. The information comes from a now deactivated LinkedIn profile of senior product manager Harrison Froeschke.
He says he was responsible for the monetization strategy of the in-game store. The profile also reveals that Diablo 4 has brought in around one billion US dollars to Blizzard to date. However, the game generated more than half of that – 666 million dollars to be precise – in the first five days after its release.
DLC coming soon
On October 8th, Vessel of Hatred, the first major expansion for Blizzard’s title, will be released. This should provide an additional boost to revenue; despite the many negative player comments, this will probably also include those from the in-game shop.
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