Activision hopes that Diablo Immortal will repeat the success of CoD: Mobile

According to Dennis Durkin, chief financial officer of Activision Blizzard, the success of last year's Call of Duty: Mobile proves that the company's strategy to release games based on famous brands on phones and tablets is working. He is optimistic about the future, including Diablo Immortal.

IN BRIEF According to Dennis Durkin, Activision Blizzard's CFO, the financial success of Call of Duty: Mobile is proof that the company's strategy for publishing mobile games is right. He emphasized that mobile productions provide a great opportunity for larger brands to further increase recognition and offer their fans more ways to interact with their favorite titles. Therefore, Durkin is optimistic about Diablo Immortal and other upcoming mobile games from the Activision Blizzard catalog. Mobile games are not very popular among the most ardent fans of electronic entertainment. This is evidenced by the criticism that fell on the Blizzard studio after the announcement of Diablo Immortal, the mobile and tablet side of the cult hack'n'slash series. Unfortunately, it is very often the case that the complaints and mockery of the community are one thing and the financial results are another. Take, for example, the free Call of Duty: Mobile, which, according to Activision Blizzard's latest quarterly financial report, contributed to a significant increase in the company's earnings. According to its chief financial officer, Dennis Durkin, the success of TiMi's production in 2019 proves that the strategy for publishing mobile games based on well-known brands is right.

This topic was raised during Q&A sessions with investors. One of them asked how Call of Duty: Mobile and its success could impact the upcoming Diablo Immortal. Here's what exactly he got in response from Durkin: CoD: Mobile had a really great start, but we are really just discovering the potential of what this brand can be on mobile devices and how to integrate experiences on different platforms, we know this is an amazing opportunity for entire series. The early success of this game shows how our franchise strategy really works. And it applies to the many other brands that we own. We can see that our players want more ways to interact with their favorite titles, be it via mobile devices or other platforms, and that offering an authentic and really deep experience on new hardware can lead to a much greater engagement. And the results of this quarter only prove it. (...) The evidence is adequate to our entire portfolio. And referring to the question, it is not only about Diablo, but all our brands, and our teams see a greater than ever chance to increase reach, community involvement and invest in players.

In addition, Durkin stood up for free-to-play on mobile devices and other platforms. He emphasized that this distribution model is not "cannibalistic" in relation to others, it is able to coexist with them and is a perfect complement to various franchises. Does Diablo Immortal have a chance of a big success? It will be interesting, therefore, to see whether Diablo Immortal, despite criticism and numerous controversies, will prove to be a success and a chance to increase the brand's popularity, as Durkin would like it to be. Everything will become clear in a while. Unfortunately, we do not yet know when exactly the full version of the title will debut on the market.