Activision Blizzard down after Diablo drama at BlizzCon



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Over the weekend at the BlizzCon, Blizzard has announced a brand new Diablo title for mobile devices, Diablo Immortal. The revelation met with some degree of reaction, with some of the fanbase hoping for an announcement of the next Diablo core. On Monday, when the New York Stock Exchange opened for the first time this week, Activision Blizzard shares fell sharply.

The value of the company's shares fell nearly 7% on Monday (via Sarah Needleman from WSJ). The shares closed at $ 64.34, or $ 68.99 compared to the previous day's close.

In a note to investors, research firm Cowen & Company said: "Blizzard has seriously miscalculated the reaction of his fans, suggesting that they are not in touch with their players as they should perhaps . "

Blizzard has not yet announced whether Diablo Immortal would be a free or paid title, although Blizzard's title development with free veteran NetEase may offer a clue. Cowen & Company has stated that regardless of the commercial model used by the game, it may be difficult for the game to make money in the Western market as expectations for additional payments are different from those of the game. Other regions of the world, such as China. The report also mentioned that the game's control system might seem awkward to the Western public but perfectly normal in China.

The BlizzCon's general sentiment towards Diablo Immortal was negative, which theoretically poses an optical problem and probably explains why investors might have been frightened. The game will probably yield a lot of money, but the decline in the course of action suggests that the way games are presented and transmitted is more important than one might have thought.

The note from Cowen & Company mentioned that Blizzard might have avoided giving players the impression of changing direction to focus on mobile gaming by offering basic enthusiasts a taste or insight the next main title of Diablo. According to Kotaku, Diablo 4 is in development and Blizzard recorded a video in which the co-founder, Allen Adham, talks about a new Diablo project. The question of whether or not this video should be screened at the BlizzCon is in question, but Blizzard said in a statement that she "had not fired any BlizzCon ads this year nor expected to have any news of it. other announcements ".

About two weeks before the BlizzCon, Blizzard issued a statement asking fans not to expect significant Diablo announcements during the show.

Diablo Immortal's main game designer, Wyatt Cheng, told GameSpot of the BlizzCon that skepticism was perfectly fair and reasonable, but he hoped people would stay open at Diablo Immortal.

"I think that in today 's world, our modern world, it is reasonable to be a bit skeptical," he said. "But then, for those who play there, they can go out and say," No, no, no, seriously, guys. I was at BlizzCon. I played the demo. It was awesome. "Let's hope word of mouth spreads."

Adham, the co-founder of Blizzard, told Kotaku that the company was expecting negative reactions around Diablo Immortal, but not to the same degree. If you do not recognize the name of Adham, it may be because he left Blizzard in 2004 and that he only came back in 2016 Mike Morhaime, another founder of Blizzard, left the company in October.

GameSpot played Diablo Immortal at BlizzCon, and you can read our initial impressions of the mobile game here. No release date has been announced, but Cowen & Company said in its note to investors that it was planning the launch of the title in 2020.

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