Diablo IV Set For 2023 Release, Necromancer Confirmed

Diablo IV finally has a release window, with the long-awaited fourth entry arriving in 2023 with a returning class in the Necromancer. Blizzard Entertainment announced on Sunday at the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase that the next installment in the long-running game franchise will release next year and will arrive on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.

The news comes with the additional announcement that the game will feature cross-play and cross-progression enabled for all platforms. It was announced that the Necromancer, one of the stables of the game since Diablo II, joins Barbarian, Sorceress, Rogue, and Druid as the fifth class in the game. The announcement states:

Joining the battle alongside iconic classes Barbarian, Sorceress, Rogue, and Druid is the legendary Necromancer, the fifth playable character class, which returns with newly designed undead mechanics. Players will be able to utilize the Necromancer’s Book of the Dead, an all-new ability for the class, allowing them to dominate the battlefield with deeper customization of their undead army than ever before. Fight with aggressive skeleton Warriors, fast-attacking Skirmishers, sword and board Defenders, or scythe-wielding Reapers. Unleash a litany of spells with Skeleton Mages, imbuing them with shadow, cold, and sacrificial magics. Deploy tanking Bone Golems, health-stealing Blood Golems, and charging Iron Golems. Or sacrifice them all to absorb their power.

Diablo IV was first announced in 2019 at BlizzCon and will be the first console/desktop iteration of the game since Diablo III was released in 2012 on PC and Mac, with console versions coming after. Blizzard released a mobile entry in the series, Diablo Immortal, on June 2nd alongside a beta for a PC port.

“We can’t wait to open the gates of Hell next year—the talented team behind Diablo IV puts gameplay first in everything they do, and they have built the biggest and most ambitious vision of Sanctuary yet,” said Mike Ybarra, president of Blizzard Entertainment. “This sprawling world draws deeply from the dark well of the franchise’s 25-year history and is designed around the philosophy of player choice, offering an adventure unlike anything Diablo players have experienced before.”