We've already heard a little bit about Diablo 4's growth since its debut on Xbox Game Pass at the end of March, and today during an IGN Live segment, the game's production director Tiffany Wat spoke about how Microsoft's subscription service boosted player numbers.
She described it as "incredible", saying she can't wait for more players to join in on the fun when the first expansion Vessel of Hatred arrives on October 8th, 2024.
"To be able to expand the audience of Diablo, bring people to Sanctuary that maybe haven't had the opportunity to try it out before, has just been incredible, and seeing people's reactions and now they can try out Vessel of Hatred on October that's very, very exciting."
Phil Spencer chimed in, mentioning how "great" it was to see even more join the fight against Hell:
"It was really great to see all of the players who came in, sometimes you think everybody who was gonna play probably has already played, and that you put it in Game Pass and you've got a couple million people who come in to play it for the first time...and you're like more people getting to play the game, so good."
Tiffany Wat added how Diablo coming to Game Pass was a "dream come true" - reiterating Phil's words about how everyone wins when more people play games. She also noted how Diablo 4's release on Game Pass had not changed the team's approach to the newest entry.
When Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred arrives later this year, you can look forward to the new Spiritborn class, the ability to recruit Mercenaries, the jungle region of Nahantu, and a new co-operative PvE feature.