Former Blizzard president questions the direction of Diablo IV after disappointing roadmap

The Diablo IV community was recently shaken by statements from Mike Ybarra, former president of Blizzard, who expressed concerns about the game's future after the release of an unsatisfactory roadmap.​

During the DICE Summit 2025 held in February, Rod Fergusson, general manager of the Diablo franchise, announced that the second expansion of the game is only scheduled for 2026. This news disappointed many fans who were expecting additional content sooner, especially after the Vessel of Hatred expansion released in October 2024.​

The roadmap for 2025, released shortly before Season 8, details the following updates:

January to April: Season of Witchcraft, introducing new witch powers, hidden jewels, and a crow as a pet.​

April to June: Return of Belial, with new boss powers, apparition raids, and a feline as a pet.​

July to September: Sins of the Horadrim, bringing updates to nightmare dungeons and keyboard and mouse support on consoles.​

September to December: Infernal Chaos, featuring chaotic powers and modifications to infernal hordes. 

However, the absence of a significant expansion until 2026 has led to criticism. Mike Ybarra commented on social media:​

"Don't just release to hit a milestone. Seasons need to break out of the release cycle, spend two months fixing issues, and then repeat."​

He also suggested:​

"Stop and give the team time to really address endgame issues. Playing for a week to then defeat an 'uber boss' 500 times for a single item, then stop until the next season, is not fundamentally fun."​

In addition, Ybarra criticized the expansion schedule:​

"The expansion schedule is too long — it should be annual. Reduce investment in 'story' (it costs too much for a single element in an ARPG) and focus on new classes, new types of mobs, new endgame activities that last more than a few days."​

These statements reflect a growing concern among players about the direction Diablo IV is taking. The community hopes that Blizzard will reassess its strategies to maintain fan engagement and satisfaction.​