The industry was generating so many “internet guy spends a fortune on Diablo Immortal” stories there for a while that we stopped even covering them. But here’s a new twist: It’s actually possible to whale so hard in the mobile MMO that the game can’t figure out how to matchmake you for the Rite of Exile event.
According to Kotaku’s report, YouTuber jtisallbusiness pumped $100,000 into his account, which naturally ensured his win-loss ratio was so high that he couldn’t find opponents in battleground PvP; the game would just let him stew in the queue, apparently for as many as 72 hours. He says that a month ago, Blizzard told him it would be addressing it soon, but it still hasn’t, meaning he’s been effectively blocked from qualifying in the Rite of Exile alongside his clan since he can’t play a battleground.
We’ll let you decide for yourselves whether sinking $100,000 into a mobile game constituted a win or a loss in the first place.
But no need to worry too much on behalf of a handful of wealthy players; Blizzard is on the case. “We’ve heard feedback that some Diablo Immortal players are unable to find matches in Battleground PvP, or it might take a long time,” Blizzard told Kotaku. “We’re looking into these reports and expect to roll out changes to the matchmaking system this week.” This $100,000 character will be back to steamroll you in PvP in no time!
Diablo Immortal’s controversial monetization paid off for Blizzard, in monthly active users if not in cash; as we covered last night, Activision-Blizzard’s Q2 2022 revenue report showed another drop in revenues for Blizzard but a 5M-player net gain in MAUs.
