The pre-release beta periods for Diablo 4 have officially closed and fans are eagerly awaiting the release date of June 6. The excitement surrounding the upcoming ARPG makes sense since there are rumors that the game has been in development since 2014, though Diablo 4 was officially announced in 2019. The fast-paced combative gameplay paired with the cold and gritty atmosphere of the world of Sanctuary has always been an attractive feature for its playerbase, but Blizzard is truly capitalizing on the hype with its stellar marketing campaign.
Diablo 4 will be the latest addition to a 26-year-old franchise and the expectations for the hack-'n-slash looter are certainly not low. In fact, Diablo 4 is one of the most anticipated games of 2023, taking its place alongside games like Hogwarts Legacy, Final Fantasy 16, and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. It's clear that Blizzard is taking the release date of the newest Diablo seriously with plenty of collaborations and even a live-action launch trailer to keep the community enthusiastic.
Diablo 4's Marketing Campaign is Raising the Bar
The reception to the unique advertising for Diablo 4 has been largely positive but has also led to some comparison to the recently released Zelda game. While Nintendo's action-adventure has seen overwhelming success in the past few weeks, some fans were quick to point out The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's minimal marketing in the days leading up to its launch. This isn't to say that Nintendo didn't advertise the game at all, but it can not be ignored that players only learned the name of the game in the second half of 2022 and were lucky to see any gameplay footage in a long span of time.
One of the biggest advertising pieces it had was Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom-themed OLED console, but other than that it's likely Nintendo believed the game would market itself. Another reason could also have been that the developers wanted to avoid revealing too much information and any subsequent spoilers. However, the Diablo 4 team appears to have gone in the opposite direction with its promotional tactics and is expecting a massive launch day because of it.
Diablo 4's unexpected collaboration with KFC was an excellent way to offer early beta access with the purchase of a KFC sandwich. Following this, Blizzard surprised people once again by teaming up with ThumbTack to "offer fans an excuse to enjoy an uninterrupted session of the open beta weekend in Diablo IV while someone else does their chores." In these playful campaigns, Diablo 4 didn't even need to advertise content from the game itself.
Such promotions are still only continuing to roll out, with Diablo 4-inspired Demon Meat Shakes being delivered to players, exclusive Diablo 4 versions of the Titan Evo gaming chairs being sold from Secretlab, and a themed crossover event with Diablo Immortal. It was speculated that another KFC collaboration was on the way, with poultry-themed cosmetic weapons being offered to participants, which has since seemingly been confirmed, too.
Truly, Blizzard's latest campaign has allowed Diablo players to immerse themselves in the build-up to the game whereas The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom was highly secretive until its pre-launch trailer. It's fair to say that the marketing strategies of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Diablo 4 couldn't have been any more different, though both have found success in their own ways. Whether Diablo 4 can meet the expectations it has set for itself remains to be seen.
Diablo 4 releases on June 6 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
