Rumors about Blizzard bringing its 2023 action RPG Diablo 4 to the Nintendo Switch 2 are heating up. According to a report by Billbil-kun of Dealabs, the title is slated for release on either the 15th or the 18th of September. The Nintendo Switch 2 version is expected to cost €69.99 / $69.99 / £62.99 depending on the region, and a physical release is planned that will likely just be a code in the box, skipping out on even a Game-Key Card.
The report points to two independent leaks courtesy of regional classification bodies in Indonesia and Taiwan that indicate that the release is quite close. As for when Blizzard will officially make the announcement, Gamescom 2026, which will feature the presence of Xbox as a whole, is expected to be the venue. It is also unknown whether the release will just include the base game, or if it will also include its two expansions – 2024’s Vessel of Hatred and this year’s Lord of Hatred.
Lord of Hatred was released for Diablo 4 across its PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S versions back in April, bringing in a host of content, including two new playable classes – the Paladin and the Warlock. On the gameplay front, it introduced the region of Skavos, as well as a host of new and improved systems that affect all of the game’s classes, like a brand-new crafting system that makes use of the Horadric Cube, which was first introduced back in Diablo 2.
As for the endgame, Lord of Hatred brought in the War Plans system that offers players a greater degree of freedom in how they want to plan out their progression. This means getting to pick and choose preferred activities that can then be modified to alter rewards. Along with this, a fishing system has been added that gives players a chance to relax between their bouts of demon-slaying.
Leading up to its release, game director Zavan Haroutunian and lead system designer Colin Finer discussed the Lord of Hatred expansion and how it might represent the core gameplay of Diablo 4 at its very best.
“We think Lord of Hatred is the best Diablo 4 has ever been — we think of it as the ultimate expression of the game,” said Haroutunian.
Finer continued: “So many of the features are a love letter to Diablo and its players. It’s been a huge labor of love from the team. We’ve been playing the game constantly internally; it’s been so easy to lose yourself in the flow state of grinding War Plans, using the map overlay to efficiently navigate every level, and using the loot filter to make ultra-endgame items pop.”
In our review, we gave the Lord of Hatred expansion a score of 6 out of 10. While we enjoyed the art and music, as well as the new additions like Skovos and the two classes, we found its campaign to be painfully paced and riddled with poor storytelling decisions. The War Plans system also felt superfluous, and we noted that it should have been part of a free update to the base game.
