Blizzard is reportedly asking Diablo 4 players if they're okay with $100 DLC
Blizzard is seemingly trying to work out how much it could charge for Diablo 4's next expansion.
When Blizzard revealed Diablo 4's first expansion at BlizzCon earlier this month, the developer left out one crucial detail. We know that Vessel of Hatred is targeting a late-2024 launch, and we know that it's adding a new region to the game along with a class that's never been in a Diablo game before.
But what we don't know is how much Vessel of Hatred is going to cost, and it looks like Blizzard is working on nailing one (or several) price points.
According to a leaked survery shared by Bellular News on YouTube (via Try Hard Guides), Blizzard has been asking some players a lot of questions about monetisation when it comes to future Diablo 4 DLC and expansions - though without naming Vessel of Hatred specifically.
The survey has multiple questions about different potential price points for the DLC, and what each price would include to justify it. $50, $70, $80, $100 are the four different price tiers listed, with each offering more and more incentives. All four get you access to the expansion, but it's the the other bonuses that are worth getting into.
The more concerning bonuses being suggested here include early access to major features/additions, or outright functional, game-changing content. We know that Vessel of Hatred will introduce NPC companions - which Blizzard says will offer convenient features like accessing your stash on the go and gold pickup - but some of the more expensive tiers give you access to the feature one whole season before it launches for everyone else.
Similarly egregious suggestions include more stash space than the standard version, as well as early access to Unique pieces of gear, and even Legendary Aspects. It's not clear if that simply means they're being added to the loot pool early, or that they're going to be given to players immediately.
A few of the extras are fairly standard. Things like Platinum bonuses (Diablo 4's paid currency), the inclusion of premium/accelerated battle passes, cosmetics like wings, town portal skins, and even a set amount of Platinum every season (once you get to the higher tiers). The list also includes early access to the expansion, which is something Diablo 4 already did at its launch.
There are also variations of existing elements, as well as other bonuses Blizzard included in some of its other games (such as World of Warcraft). For instance, the survey mentions a 'Hero Skin', which is a cosmetic armour set with six different variations.
Blizzard is seemingly also interested in adding different mounts to the game that aren't horses. You will not only get a unique mount, the more expensive tiers allow the look of the mount to evolve with achievements.
As always with those sort of surveys, it's worth taking the information with a pinch of salt. While surveys have and will continue to be used to gauge player interest in certain features as they're being developed, they don't always represent what's actually being worked on.