Nostalgia is the name of the game in Diablo IV’s next major activity, with players returning to where it all began.
End-game content for Diablo IV’s upcoming season, titled “Waking Nightmares”, will allow Diablo fans to revisit the hellish franchise’s roots with a recreation of “almost all of Diablo 1”, including major dungeons and iconic moments, which will all culminate in facing the Lord of Terror himself.
The information was revealed by Diablo IV Season Lead Owen Leach during a panel at BlizzCon 2026 and reported by GamesRadar. Leach said the key story beats from the original Diablo game have been “built in Diablo IV’s art style [and] compelling gameplay”, including the battles against Baal, Mephisto and Diablo. Deckard Cain will also return, despite his death in Diablo III, as “soul lost in time” who guides the player through their nightmarish trials. ‘
End-game content […] will allow Diablo fans to revisit […] major dungeons and iconic moments, which will all culminate in facing the Lord of Terror himself.
The content will begin in the famed Tristam Cathedral, lead players through the Catacombs and Caves before plunging into the fiery pits of Hell. Despite the changes to match with Diablo IV, the gothic identity of the franchise will be preserved and weaponized in this nostalgic play for fans.
This isn’t the first time fans have seen whispers of classic Diablo tales in Diablo IV, with fans seeing warped visions of a destroyed Tristam during the main quest. Echoes of characters like Cain and Marius swirl as they discuss the fall of Tristam and the rise of the Prime Evils. The section is part of Mephisto’s attempts to convince the player the new Horadrim will be unable to triumph over the wrath of Hell.
However, this scene was a scripted, albeit atmospheric, story sequence—players had no agency to dungeon crawl or interact with the ruined Tristam in any way. This new activity will turn that emotional vision into a fully-playable dungeon runner that long-time Diablo fans are sure to enjoy.
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Will Diablo 5’s Announcement Kill Diablo 4?
With the announcement of Diablo V just days ago during BlizzCon 2026, fans have been concerned that their beloved Diablo IV will die a slow death as Blizzard shifts its energy to building the new mainline franchise title.
After the game’s reveal, Blizzard shared that they’ll no longer release any further expansions for Diablo IV, but will continue to support the game with new seasonal content. The mega-publisher has already launched two major expansions, titled Vessel of Hatred and Lord of Hatred, which brought the Spiritborn, Paladin and Warlock classes to the game, as well as new jungle and island-themed locales for players to explore.
That said, Blizzard is targeting a Diablo V launch in spring 2029, so fans have a very long wait and are fearing that period will be a Diablo drought. Three years is a long time to rely only on seasonal content without any major updates and player feelings are mixed on whether the team can deliver enough to tide them over. However, recent news about Microsoft flogging its IPs to Hollywood studios could mean Diablo content may come in the form of TV or movies before the new game. Blizzard has already announced an animated Diablo series is in production.
After [Diablo V’s] reveal, Blizzard shared that they’ll no longer release any further expansions for Diablo IV, but will continue to support the game with new seasonal content.
While Diablo V was announced with a gorgeous cinematic trailer, barely any content about the game was revealed, outside of the premise. The world of Sanctuary has been destroyed, with the forces of Hell taking over—their evil will be a tangible force from the first moment in-game, according to Blizzard. Diablo has claimed victory over the world and no safe places exist anymore.
Blizzard did share that there will be more classes available at launch than any other post-DLC Diablo game, with the Demon Hunter and Monk classes set to return, followed by a new class, the Plague Knight, who is heavily armored and spreads diseases as a method of combat.
Also announced was a long-rumored new StarCraft shooter, targeting launch in 2030, which will move the franchise away from its traditional real-time strategy formula for the first time.
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