The company received a gaming licence from Chinese regulators for the game last February, before authorities months later rolled out new rules and halted issuances of new game licences for almost nine months. The company did not address the social media ban in the statement and it was unclear what triggered the decision.Ĭo-developed by NetEase and Activision Blizzard, Diablo Immortal is one of the most-anticipated games this year and its China launch is being closely watched to gauge Beijing's attitude towards the country's US$46-billion video games market that was hit by regulatory restrictions last year. Other countries in the Asia Pacific region will still see be getting the game on June 22 nd as scheduled.Internet and gaming giant NetEase delayed the rollout of its video game Diablo Immortal in China three days ahead of its official launch, a move that comes just after the game's official account on Weibo was banned from making new posts.Ĭhina-based NetEase, which was set to release the game on Thursday, did not provide a new launch date, but said on Sunday it wanted to make changes such as improvements to the gameplay experience and conduct "multiple optimisation adjustments".
The full Google-translated announcement can be found on the Diablo Immortal regional site. A release date has yet to be announced but Chinese players will be compensated for the delay with a “Thank You Package” that will contain legendary gear along with various items and materials. The surprise announcement had so much of an impact on investor confidence that NetEase’s stock prices dipped by as much as 10% just hours after it was made, as reported by Bloomberg. It might also have something to do with the Chinese gaming authorities’ restrictions on playtime for minors and a youth-mode for streaming and online services.
According to PCGamer, the post in question alluded to “the bear” which might have been misinterpreted as a reference to Winnie the Pooh which has been used to mock Chinese President Xi Jinping.Īnother possible reason could be Diablo Immortal’s controversial monetization scheme as the Chinese government has been known to be heavy-handed against any form of lootboxes in games released in the country. The Hong Kong launch has also presumably been delayed by extension.īlizzard Entertainment and Chinese gaming giant NetEase cited content optimizations, adjustments, and visual improvements as the reason for the delay, although there’s speculation that it might have something to do with a post that resulted in the suspension of the game’s official account on Chinese social media platform Weibo. Diablo Immortal’s Chinese launch has been delayed indefinitely just two days before its scheduled release in the Asia Pacific region.
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