Around 40 minutes of footage that appears to be from a Diablo 4 test build has leaked online, via Reddit. While the origin of the footage is unknown, it is labelled with ‘Private Test Build’ and appears to have been recorded by a third party viewing the gameplay, potentially via a service like Discord or another online streaming platform. Chatter can be heard over the first video, with one commentator identifying a ‘Skye’ who may be playing the game, and another expressing disbelief that they’re watching actual gameplay from Diablo 4.
There appears to be much confusion in the leaked video, with the commentators recording the footage being unclear about who exactly they’re watching. Context clues suggest the streamer was live on a particular platform, although it’s unclear what forum this was, or how they had access to an early version of the game.
Speculation online is that the Diablo 4 build came from an early ‘Family and Friends’ alpha that several third-party players were recently privy to, as an earlier gameplay leak also originated from this test build – although there are currently few answers about the nature of the footage.
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A significant chunk of unofficial gameplay is now doing the rounds online, showing off more of Diablo 4 ahead of an official reveal – reportedly set to take place during The Game Awards 2022 in December.
The two videos (one is 5 minutes, and another is 38 minutes) appear to show in-development gameplay, with a mixture of placeholder and complete assets. The unknown player is in Act V of the game, travelling between dungeons, clearing enemies and hunting for treasure. The sleek game menu is shown off, as are various items, inventories and upgrades for characters – although the context for this romp is not present.
According to those analysing the footage, several improvements appear to have been made in Diablo 4 – improvements that should streamline gameplay, like the appearance of a dedicated Shop in the menu UI, and character skill cooldowns that reflect the design of Diablo 3.
At this stage, Activision Blizzard has not addressed the leak, however, we expect more news in the coming days. Recently, Rockstar Games suffered a similar leak for GTA 6, with the company slamming down hard on users sharing this footage online. It’s unknown if a similar fate awaits the mystery Diablo 4 leaker.
