The reception to Diablo: Immortal hasn't exactly been warm and fuzzy. After the announcement and subsequent booing of the game at this year's Blizzcon, it's fair to say that gamers weren't pleased. Thanks to Bloomberg, we're seeing those waves begin to crest in the form of big sell-offs of Activision stock. As of yesterday, share prices sunk to their lowest rate in nearly a year. Prices fell to just over $64 each, dropping 7% since the announcement.
Many industry analysts believe that this is a fear-based fallout that won't last and there may be merit to that. One need look no further than games like Blizzard's own Hearthstone to see why Diablo-on-the-go is a compelling idea, but other traditionally PC titles have also made the jump successfully. Fortnite or PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds rake in incredible profits every month.
The backlash has been profound, however. The announcement made the game into an overnight meme - "do you even have phones?" - that will be hard for the company to shake. Likewise, rumors that the game is largely being developed by NetEase and not "from the ground up" as Blizzard presented it have shaken gamer's faith in the potential Diablo: Immortal might hold.
Whether Blizzard will react to this feedback is an open question. Ultimately, Diablo: Immortal will need to stand on its own merits. Short of that, there may not be much anyone can do to change gamers minds after such a controversial reveal.
