Someone at Blizzard this week probably learned a lesson on what to never ever name your files. A few outlets, including Wowhead, spotted a Diablo 4 server update that went out under the name of what sure sounds like the new class coming in the second expansion next year.
Blizzard regularly updates internal versions of its games that are inaccessible publicly, but show up through APIs that people monitor for hints at things like a World of Warcraft expansion entering alpha testing.
A couple days ago, one of the Diablo 4 servers was updated with a build named something I don’t think it was supposed to be named: “2.5.Xpaladin.67961”.
They could’ve called it anything, but they called it the name of a class that fans have been begging for since Diablo 4 was released. The build also happened to go out at the same time a bunch of influencers arrived at Blizzard HQ to give feedback on mysterious upcoming changes.
While the version name doesn’t confirm anything alone, the timing suggests that someone at Blizzard named an internal build of the game after the new class they’re having influencers playtest this week. If the “2.5” part of the name is any indication, it seems like Blizzard is having them test it on the version of the game two seasons from now.
Even though the next expansion should be version 3.0, Blizzard is probably just using the most stable build available and isn’t actually going to release the class early. Spiritborn, for example, is only unlocked if you buy Vessel of Hatred, and I don’t expect that to change with the next expansion.
A paladin class felt inevitable given how popular the archetype has been throughout Diablo’s history. Paladins debuted in Diablo 2, missed Diablo 3’s launch but showed up in its Reaper of Souls expansion, and were part of Diablo Immortal’s original roster.
Diablo 4, despite having shields, has been paladin-less since it came out, upsetting all the fans who dream of slaying demons with holy powers. Hopefully this little mistake is a sign that the time has finally come for paladins to re-emerge in Sanctuary once again.
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