Predictions

30:09 We think Diablo 4's next year is the road its developers describe here, seasons leading to the Amazon and the Aspect of Death, and that the Amazon arrives in March 2027 as a paid Class Pack that gives Diablo 4 its biggest Steam month since Lord of Hatred.

These are Vi.ki's own predictions and opinions, not reported facts. Each one says what we base it on and when it can be checked. We will mark each one right or wrong when it resolves.

When does Diablo 4 Season 16 start?

We think Season 16 starts on Tuesday, Dec 1 or Tuesday, Dec 8, 2026, at 10 a.m. PT.

Confidence: Likely. Check by: Dec 2026.

Why we think so: Blizzard's last two seasons started four and five weeks after their test realms opened, and Season 16's opened on Oct 27, 2026 (Blizzard); four to five weeks later is Nov 24 to Dec 1. Thanksgiving week rules out Nov 24 for us, and seasons start on Tuesdays (Seasons). Most seasons began at 10 a.m. Pacific.

What would prove us wrong: Season 16 starts on any other day, or after Dec 8, 2026.

When will the Amazon come to Diablo 4?

Our prediction: the Amazon Class Pack comes out in March 2027, on the same day as Season 17.

Confidence: Possible. Check by: Mar 2027.

Why we think so: Blizzard promised her in the first half of 2027 and said the seasons "leading up to the release of the Amazon" end in a confrontation with the Aspect of Death (Amazon). If Season 16 starts in early December and runs the usual three months (Seasons), Season 17 starts in early March, and the story arc points to her arriving with it, not in the middle of a season. Season 16's test realm did not include her, so she cannot be in Season 16.

What would prove us wrong: the Amazon comes out in any month but March 2027, or after June.

How much will the Amazon Class Pack cost?

We think the Amazon Class Pack costs $19.99 in the US, and that it does not need Lord of Hatred.

Confidence: Possible. Check by: Jun 2027.

Why we think so: Blizzard has not announced a price (Amazon). Lord of Hatred, with two classes, a region and a campaign, costs $39.99 in its Standard Edition (Price and Editions), so one class alone should cost about half of that. Selling it to players without the expansion would reach every Game Pass player, whose base game does not include the expansions (Game Pass), and we think that reach is the point of a Class Pack.

What would prove us wrong: a price other than $19.99, or a pack that needs Lord of Hatred.

Who is the Aspect of Death in Diablo 4?

We think the Fractured Reaper, the new Lair Boss on Season 16's test realm, is the Aspect of Death's herald, and that the Aspect of Death itself arrives as a new Lair Boss in the Amazon's season, ending the arc that began with Season of Death Awakening.

Confidence: Possible. Check by: Jun 2027.

Why we think so: Blizzard said the seasons "leading up to the release of the Amazon" end in a confrontation with the Aspect of Death, after the death cult of Season 14 and the returning dead of Season of Hell's Legacy (Seasons). Season 16's test realm adds a lair boss named for a reaper (Season 16), and Blizzard has made its endgame bosses the payoff of its stories since Belial became the first Exalted Lair Boss in Season 8 (Bosses). We think a story told across a year needs a boss at the end that players farm.

What would prove us wrong: the Aspect of Death is only a campaign or cutscene, or comes before or after the Amazon's season.

Which class comes to Diablo 4 after the Amazon?

We think Blizzard announces a second Class Pack before Dec 31, 2027, and that its class is the Assassin.

Confidence: Long shot. Check by: Dec 2027.

Why we think so: with the Amazon, Diablo 4 will have every Diablo II class but the Assassin: the Barbarian, Druid, Necromancer, Sorcerer, Paladin and Amazon (Classes). A Class Pack is Blizzard's new way to sell content without an expansion, and senior game director Brent Gibson said there are no more expansions planned (Diablo 4). We think a second pack is likely if the Amazon sells; naming the Assassin is the bold part.

What would prove us wrong: no second Class Pack announced in 2027, or one with another class.

Will Diablo 4 get a third expansion?

We think Blizzard announces no third Diablo 4 expansion before Dec 31, 2027.

Confidence: Likely. Check by: Dec 2027.

Why we think so: senior game director Brent Gibson told PC Gamer the team is "all focused on [Diablo 4] seasons and getting to Diablo 5" and no more expansions are planned (PC Gamer). The Amazon as a Class Pack, not an expansion, shows how Blizzard means to sell new content until Diablo 5.

What would prove us wrong: a paid Diablo 4 expansion announced in 2026 or 2027.

Will the Amazon set a new Steam record for Diablo 4?

We think the month the Amazon comes out sets Diablo 4's highest Steam count yet, above 64,518.

Confidence: Possible. Check by: Jun 2027.

Why we think so: the record of 64,518 came in May 2026 with Lord of Hatred and its two classes, and Season of Hell's Legacy came within 513 of it in September 2026, by Vi.ki's own reading of Steam's counts on Nov 7, 2026 (SteamDB). We think the Amazon, a class from Diablo II, will draw back more lapsed players than any season, and if we are right that it needs no expansion, open to more players than Lord of Hatred's classes were. Diablo 4 has never sold a class on its own before, which is why we stop at Possible.

What would prove us wrong: SteamDB's all-time peak still 64,518 on Jun 30, 2027.

How many seasons will Diablo 4 have in 2027?

We think four or five Diablo 4 seasons start in 2027, from Season 17 in March to at least Season 20.

Confidence: Likely. Check by: Dec 2027.

Why we think so: seasons have usually lasted about three months; four started in 2024 and five in 2025 (Seasons). Blizzard has said Diablo 4 stays "fully supported" until Diablo 5 in Spring 2029, and seasons are now its main way to add content (Diablo 5).

What would prove us wrong: three or fewer, or six or more, seasons starting in 2027.

Will Diablo 4's Steam reviews recover?

We think the base game's all-time Steam rating stays Mixed, between 60% and 69% positive, through the end of 2027.

Confidence: Likely. Check by: Dec 2027.

Why we think so: it stood at 65% of 80,188 reviews on Oct 20, 2026 (Steam), and three years of reviews move slowly. We think the seasons since Loot Reborn have made the game much better, but the players who left in 2023 rarely come back to change a review.

What would prove us wrong: an all-time rating of 70% or more, or below 60%, by Dec 31, 2027.

When will Blizzard announce the Season 16 date?

We think Blizzard publishes its Season 16 post, with the season's name and start time, between Nov 23 and Dec 2, 2026, and that it prints no end date for Season of Hell's Legacy before then.

Confidence: Likely. Check by: Dec 2026.

Why we think so: outside expansion launches and BlizzCon, Blizzard's season post has gone up 6 to 8 days before the season, and both of our counts, the wait after a test realm and the length of a season, have their middle on Dec 8, 2026 (Season 15 End Date has the tables). No season post we read prints an end date.

What would prove us wrong: a Blizzard post or page that dates the end of Season 15 before Nov 23, or a Season 16 post published after Dec 2, 2026.

Will the Trace of Echoes get easier to find?

We think Blizzard adds a way to get a Trace of Echoes on purpose (a vendor, a Horadric Cube recipe or a guaranteed reward) in a patch released by Jun 30, 2027.

Confidence: Possible. Check by: Jun 2027.

Why we think so: Blizzard loosened the drop twice in the mode's first five months, in patches 3.1.0 and 3.2.1, and on Nov 12, 2026 only 0.2% of Steam players held the one achievement tied to Echoing Hatred (Trace of Echoes). Season 16's War Plans changes are about letting players choose their rewards, and a key nobody can aim for is the opposite of that.

What would prove us wrong: Blizzard's patch notes through Jun 30, 2027 add no source for a Trace that a player can choose to earn.

Will the Amazon get a Steam achievement?

We think the Amazon gets a class achievement on Steam when her Class Pack comes out, taking the list from 45 to 46 or more, while the Paladin still has none.

Confidence: Possible. Check by: Jun 2027.

Why we think so: the Spiritborn and the Warlock, the classes that launched with an expansion, each have one, and the Paladin, a pre-purchase reward, is the only class without (Achievements). A class sold alone is closer to the first case, but Blizzard has never sold one that way.

What would prove us wrong: Steam's list on Jun 30, 2027 with the Amazon playable and no achievement naming her or her skills, or a Paladin achievement added before then.

What creators predict

Rhykker: the Paladin in the second expansion

In his Feb 27, 2025 predictions for Diablo 4's second expansion, ten months before Blizzard announced it, Rhykker said "it is almost a certainty that we're getting the Paladin analog", calling the Paladin the most requested class since the game's release (2:28). He called it: Blizzard revealed the Paladin with Lord of Hatred on Dec 11, 2025, playable at once for anyone who pre-purchased, and the expansion launched on Apr 28, 2026 (Lord of Hatred). We think it was the safest call in the series, because Blizzard had held back the class players asked for most.

Check by: Apr 2026.

Result (Dec 11, 2025): Right. Blizzard revealed the Paladin with Lord of Hatred on Dec 11, 2025, and the expansion launched on Apr 28, 2026 (Lord of Hatred). We think it was the call the most-requested-class argument made almost certain, and he made it ten months early.

Rhykker: the second Lord of Hatred class

With the Paladin out and the second class hidden, Rhykker ranked the candidates on Jan 31, 2026, putting the Oracle first and "the Warlock just a step behind", and adding that the Warlock "would sell a lot better" as the dark half of a light and dark pair (22:12). It was the Warlock (Warlock). We think his runner-up reasoning, the marketing pair, was the better argument than his lore pick.

Check by: Apr 2026.

Result (Feb 11, 2026): Partly right. Blizzard revealed the Warlock at the Diablo 30th Anniversary Spotlight on Feb 11, 2026 (Warlock), his second pick, not his first, the Oracle. We think the marketing argument he gave for the Warlock was the right one and his lore pick the wrong one.

LoatheBurger: a third expansion revealed at BlizzCon

On Sep 11, 2026, the day before BlizzCon, LoatheBurger said "I believe we are going to get a teaser or announcement of the next expansion", one that would "begin the age of destruction" with Baal as the next Prime Evil (5:28). It did not happen: Blizzard announced the Amazon Class Pack and Diablo 5 instead, and has said no more Diablo 4 expansions are planned (Diablo 4). We think Baal's turn comes in a later game, not in Diablo 4.

Check by: Sep 2026.

Result (Sep 12, 2026): Wrong. BlizzCon brought the Amazon Class Pack and Diablo 5, not a third Diablo 4 expansion, and Blizzard has said no more Diablo 4 expansions are planned (Diablo 4). We think he read the story right, with Baal next, and the game wrong: the story moved to a new game.

wudijo: the Amazon in Season 17

After BlizzCon, on Sep 15, 2026, wudijo said the Amazon is coming "quite soon, which is probably season 17, so like two seasons from now most likely" (15:47). We think he is right, for the same reason as our own prediction: three months a season puts Season 17 in March 2027, inside Blizzard's first half of 2027.

Check by: Mar 2027.

Our take

We think Diablo 4 in late 2026 is the best it has ever been, because Lord of Hatred finished the story and its endgame now has more to do than any season can use. In our view the game is worth $69.99 for the Age of Hatred Collection to anyone starting now, and the base game alone, or Game Pass, is the wrong way in: the Spiritborn, Paladin and Warlock are the classes that make it fun to play today (Price and Editions).

We think the seasonal rhythm is underrated: a new mechanic every three months with a fresh start keeps the game alive in a way no single expansion could. We think the shop is overrated as a complaint: it sells cosmetics, not power, as Blizzard promised in 2022 (Battle Pass and Shop).

We think announcing Diablo 5 for 2029 helps Diablo 4 more than it hurts: it tells players the game has two more years of seasons, the Amazon and support, which is longer than most live games can promise.

Frequently asked questions

Is Diablo 4 dying because of Diablo 5?

We do not think so. Blizzard says Diablo 4 is fully supported until Diablo 5 in Spring 2029, and we expect four seasons and the Amazon in 2027 alone.

Should I buy Lord of Hatred or wait for the Amazon?

We think you should buy Lord of Hatred now if you play Diablo 4 at all: it adds two classes and the end of the story, and we expect the Amazon to be sold separately anyway.

Will the Amazon be good in Diablo 4?

We think a new class is always strong in its first season, as Blizzard wants it played, and we expect the Amazon to be near the top of the tier lists when she launches.

When will Diablo 4 Season 17 start?

We think Season 17 starts in March 2027, with the Amazon, if Season 16 starts in early December 2026 and lasts the usual three months.

Sources

• The 3.3.0 PTR: What You Need to Know, Blizzard, Oct 22, 2026
• No more Diablo 4 expansions are planned, PC Gamer
• Diablo 4 charts, SteamDB, the source of the counts Vi.ki read on Nov 7, 2026
• Diablo IV user reviews, Steam, read Oct 20, 2026
• Diablo 4 Expansion 2 Predictions: New Class, Release Date, & More, Rhykker, Feb 27, 2025 (video)
• Diablo 4 Lord of Hatred: The Unrevealed Class (My Best Bet), Rhykker, Jan 31, 2026 (video)
• What Is Diablo REALLY Revealing at BlizzCon? My Lore-backed Predictions, LoatheBurger, Sep 11, 2026 (video)
• Diablo V - What it will REALLY look like, wudijo, Sep 15, 2026 (video)