Credit where it is due: Blizzard's Diablo IV launch has been incredibly smooth

It’s been six days since Diablo IV went into general release, as it seems like the game is everywhere in my life. The Gaming Nexus slack is made up of about 40% Diablo content (following a peak 90% during the pre-release period), my Twitter feed is full of people showing off gear and builds, and my son and I discuss our playthroughs every night during dinner. (He whipped through the campaign as a sorcerer. My necromancer is level 44 and is still meandering aimlessly through Act II, getting distracted by every tree trunk and cellar he sees.)

But you know what I’m not seeing anywhere, either on social media or in my private chats? People bitching about technical issues with the Diablo IV launch.

Diablo IV’s server-slam era was a little bumpy, with people getting substantial queue times before entering Sanctuary, but that was the point. Those pre-release tests are supposed to be rocky, to allow the game’s engineers time to bang on the engine with a hammer. By the time Diablo IV entered its early release period, which gave game access to folks that pre-ordered the game, substantial wait times were all but eliminated. I have had a few friends who reported that their PlayStations got stuck on stupid when logging in, spinning endlessly on the loading screen, but a quick reset usually resolves the issue.

For me, logging in has been nothing but smooth sailing. I’ve been able to log into Diablo IV just as quickly and easily as I would log into an offline game. I’ve been popping back and forth between the PS5 on the big TV downstairs and my old PS4 on my smaller TV and have had very little difficulty with either configuration.

This is a far cry from the vast majority of online game launches. Almost every game that features a major online component crashed and burns its first few days out of the hanger, before the developers eventually beat it into shape. But Diablo IV has had me wandering merrily through its demon and goatman-infested swamps and snowdrifts with no barriers to entry this entire time. And as such, I just wanted to take a moment to give Blizzard a pat on the back for a job well done. As much as we gamers moan and complain about launches, we know it isn’t easy. Diablo IV has had one of the smoothest launches in recent memory, and we appreciate that.