Diablo 4 has no more expansions planned, but its story is not over
Future seasons will begin showing us how Sanctuary falls to the Lord of Terror.
Shortly after the reveal of Diablo 5 at BlizzCon 2026, Blizzard has confirmed that it currently has no plans for another Diablo 4 expansion after Lord of Hatred. That does not mean Diablo 4 is finished, though! Its seasons will continue, and Blizzard plans to use them to start telling the story of how Sanctuary eventually becomes the world we will see in Diablo 5.
This is very different from the future Blizzard originally described for Diablo 4. Back in 2023, then-franchise boss Rod Fergusson said annual expansions were part of the plan. That schedule had already been dropped by the time the second expansion moved to 2026, and now Lord of Hatred appears to be the last one currently planned.
Lord of Hatred Ends the Story of Hatred
Speaking to PC Gamer at BlizzCon, Diablo Game Director Brent Gibson explained that the team considers the Story of Hatred complete after Lord of Hatred.
"We feel like we told the Story of Hatred," Gibson said, referring to Lord of Hatred and the conclusion of Mephisto's story. Blizzard is now moving toward what it calls the Story of Terror, which will lead into Diablo 5 and Diablo's rule over Sanctuary.
Diablo 4 Seasons Will Lead Into Diablo 5
Diablo 5 begins around 100 years after the events of Diablo 4, in a Sanctuary that has already fallen under Diablo's control.
That leaves a huge missing chapter between the world we know now and the one Blizzard showed at BlizzCon. According to Gibson, Diablo 4's future seasons will help tell that story, but the exact path has not been decided yet. Blizzard wants to see how players respond to each season before committing to where the story goes next, giving the team room to develop Sanctuary's fall over the coming years.
We already know where the story of Sanctuary is headed... The interesting part will be seeing how much of that fall happens during Diablo 4 itself.
Blizzard Plans to Support Diablo 4 for a Long Time
No more expansions does not mean Blizzard is done with Diablo 4. Gibson said the game will continue receiving support "for a very long time," referring to Diablo 2: Resurrected as an example of Blizzard continuing to update older games in the series. PC Gamer also asked if Diablo 4 and Diablo 5 could eventually run side by side, similar to Path of Exile and Path of Exile 2. Gibson did not confirm that, so we still do not know what support will look like once Diablo 5 arrives.
All we really know for now is that Diablo 4 will continue through seasons, which now have a much bigger job ahead of them as they begin leading the game toward the Story of Terror.