Yes, it is official a Diablo III expansion is in progress. Mike Morhaime of Blizzard Entertainment confirmed the expansion during an earnings call.
The details are limited at this time and we don’t have any hints towards how much progress has been made on the new expansion, but knowing Blizzard’s reputation for releasing games when they are “ready”, it’s probably safe to say it’s going to be a little while. Opinion of Diablo III is split down the middle as many fans were disappointed in some aspects of the game. The lack of an offline gameplay mode was disappointing for long time Diablo fans who didn’t want to have to deal with server issues just to play the game by themselves.
The controversial real money auction house (RMAH), has some gamers claiming that is takes away one of the major incentives to keep playing the game, finding loot. Diablo III has seen some improvement through the release of patch 1.0.5, but something still feels likes it’s missing. I think that Blizzard should move their focus away from some of the previously mentioned features and really fine-tune the gameplay experience itself. Hopefully we will see this next expansion reinvigorate Diablo with not only new lands and lore to explore but adding or removing, some key features.
Regardless of how you feel about Diablo III, Activision has stated that the game is the #1 bestselling game in dollars and units on the PC in the U.S. and Europe since it’s launch. I had a feeling the game would sell well considering how many players still love Diablo II and it’s expansion, Lord of Destruction. The real question is whether or not those same people who originally bought the game will continue to stick with Diablo and purchase the new expansion.
As always we will keep you informed on the latest details surrounding the D3 expansion.