'Diablo Immortal' Microtransactions Spark Fan Outrage

The first week of “Diablo Immortal” failed to ignite much confidence in Blizzard’s fanbase as the game’s exorbitant and aggressive microtransactions caused many fans to look the other way.

Players took issue with the game’s cash shop, which holds a variety of optional purchases that can help players progress through the game faster. This type of cash shop strategy is relatively common, especially among mobile games, but “Diablo Immortal” pushes this past the limit of what many gamers consider acceptable.

The highest tier of Legendary Gems, an important component of the game’s post-campaign grind, currently cannot be obtained just by playing regularly. Players will have to spend real money for a small chance at obtaining them through “Diablo Immortal’s” take on the controversial loot box system.

Gearing up a character for endgame content is estimated to cost over $100,000, Game Rant reported.

YouTuber Bellular News calculated how much players needed to spend in order to max out a single character in “Diablo Immortal,” and the results were not favorable.

The estimated costs cover everything, from Legendary Crest purchases to the expenses tied to actually upgrading gear. Bellular News noted that simply Awakening a piece of gear for a meager boost to its stats costs around $16, and they aren’t yet sure if people would need to pay the same amount for every item they want to upgrade.

Earlier in the game’s beta phase, Reddit users discovered that players will have to spend $40,000 to $50,000 to fully upgrade a Legendary Gem for a 1% reduction to the damage characters take. To fully max out a single character without paying for anything in the cash shop, players will reportedly have to spend roughly 10 years’ worth of playtime.

Countless posts in the “Diablo Immortal” subreddit have called out the game’s predatory microtransactions, and many players expressed dismay since the gameplay is genuinely good.

Players praised the core experience, but they reported that the pay-to-win elements became much more oppressive past Level 50. One post noted how the endgame Helliquary Raid activity might become completely inaccessible to F2P players due to Combat Rating requirements.

The developers have yet to release a statement regarding the community’s feedback.