Diablo 4 has picked up over $150m in microtransactions alone, but will the ball keep rolling?

Diablo 4 has reportedly made over $150m in Microtransactions alone, according to the now-hidden LinkedIn of Harrison Froeschke, Senior Product Manager on D4. While the profile can not be viewed publicly at this time, it was in one of his roles for the game, which also has cited over $1B in total lifetime revenue. Both are very impressive numbers, given how long the game has been out.

With an expansion on the way in the form of Vessel of Hatred, Diablo 4 can stand to make well more than $150m in microtransactions in the future. However, there is one thing that is stopping it, and that’s the game itself.

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Diablo 4 has made over $150m in microtransactions - more than its initial development budget

D4 has done quite well for itself when it comes to producing revenue (Image via LinkedIn || Courtesy of Gamepressure)

Diablo 4’s $150m+ in microtransactions is very impressive, considering what the game cost to develop. It’s been reported in the past that the game took approximately $100m to develop - $16M a year for six years. That makes this achievement significant for the hit Action RPG from Blizzard Entertainment.

While the exact development cost hasn’t been made public, even if you factor in the marketing costs (~$30M), the microtransactions for Diablo 4 more than makeup for that cost. That makes D4, even if you aren’t a fan of how the game plays, a success, in terms of financial costs. However, even with that in mind, things could be a lot better. Unfortunately, Blizzard’s decisions are costing them potentially millions of dollars.

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Diablo 4 has made an impressive amount in microtransactions, but it could be so much higher

These prices are just out of hand (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

$150m is an impressive amount of money for Diablo 4 to have made so far. However, we have to look at something that could be holding the game back: the sheer cost of in-game cosmetics. It’s something fans have joked and mocked since the very beginning. While people love the game, and some are clearly willing to spend money on it, the cost is ridiculous.

Let’s look at some of these prices. A good example is the Warcraft Legends cosmetics - these are gorgeous, and I admittedly do have two of them (Sorcerer and Rogue). However, they clock in at 2,800 Platinum a piece. That’s 25 USD if you want one full set of cosmetics for one of the character classes.

Almost every cosmetic set on the in-game shop costs 2,800 Platinum, with a few being 2,500 Platinum. There are a handful in the 1,800-2,200 range, but the really good stuff costs more. Unless you have some free platinum from purchasing the higher-tier expansion, or from the Battle Pass rewards, you’re going to have to shell out 25 bucks either way. The only things that tend to be cheaper are the Accessory cosmetics - around 900-1,000 Platinum typically.

These outfits are amazing, but the cost makes them not worthwhile (Image via Blizzard Entertainment)

When you combine this with the fact that many players feel the paid cosmetics are visually quite superior to the free offerings the game gives you, it leads to a sour experience for those looking to invest money into the game. I think one solid way to improve this for players, is to reduce the cost of these cosmetic outfits in the future.

I will say that the free outfits you get from the game have improved since launched, but they still are no match for the ones that you can spend Platinum on - not by a long shot. I appreciate the effort and cost that goes into making them, don’t get me wrong. That said, if the costs were more reasonable, I feel like players would ultimately spend more money - 25 dollars is a lot for one outfit in a video game.

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Diablo 4 is an exceptional game, and a fun Action RPG - one of my personal favorites. But I cannot deny that while the game has made serious money, it could do so much better if only the cosmetics weren’t so frightfully expensive.