Diablo 4 seems to be embracing its MMO side, as the new entry will demand a constant internet connection for players to play together in a shared world. Dungeons are instanced, meaning you won’t find randoms during raids with your party, nor will key story moments be interrupted by other players. But you will come across folks roaming around towns and participating in world events.
Details are vague, but Blizzard says they’re working on a way to create a shared world with random player encounters without compromising the studio’s goal of bringing a darker atmosphere to the game more akin to Diablo 2
game director Luis Barriga took the time to clarify that Blizzard’s sequel definitely isn’t an MMORPG, despite some similar features. “Our goal has always been to incorporate elements from shared world games without the game ever feeling like it’s veering into massively multiplayer territory,” Barriga explained.
“To be clear, this is a philosophy rather than a tech limitation. We find that the game stops feeling like Diablo and the world feels less dangerous when you see other players too often or in too high numbers,” he continued.
Despite technically existing in a shared world, all dungeons and key story beats are experienced privately between you and your party - no interruptions from randoms. However, you will find other players roaming around in towns when there isn’t a story moment happening, and you’ll probably want to coordinate with randoms during large world events.
Asked by the streamer about microtransactions, Shely said, “Diablo IV will be available as a base game, and … we’re going to have expansions. You also will be able to acquire cosmetics in the game.” The streamer then asks, “so, MTX? Is that going to be through some sort of shop?” Shely responds vaguely with, “It’s very early … but yes.”
So it sounds like cosmetic microtransactions will be a feature in Diablo 4, but hopefully Blizzard is wise enough to refrain from adding microtransactions that benefit the player in gameplay situations, as we’ve seen before that pay-to-win mechanics can often spell doom for even the most mainstream games.