One of 2023’s biggest and highest-rated new game releases is free to play on Xbox this weekend, but only for a limited time.
Until October 22, Xbox gamers can play a 10-hour free trial of Diablo 4, regardless of if they are signed up for Xbox Game Pass Core or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or not. One of the main perks of Xbox Game Pass Core and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is the ability to play games for free as part of the weekly Free Play Days. Typically, these events don’t give players enough time to play through a game in its entirety, but they are great for those that like to try before they buy.
Most of the time, free game trials on Xbox require players be signed up for Xbox Game Pass Core or Game Pass Ultimate. This is because the perk originated with Xbox Live Gold, the defunct subscription service that has since been folded into Xbox Game Pass Core and Game Pass Ultimate. Diablo 4 is an exception, though its free trial comes with a 10-hour limit, whereas most of the Free Play Days games can be played as much as one wants for the weekend that they’re available.
Diablo 4 may be hugely controversial now, but it’s still one of the biggest new game releases of 2024. When Diablo 4 first launched, the game was met with rave reviews from critics and was hugely popular with fans of the franchise. It wasn’t until the community reached the endgame that people started turning against Diablo 4, as many complained that the endgame content didn’t live up to expectations. But while the game may not necessarily have the staying power that some Diablo fans expected, it’s certainly worth at least one playthrough. Anyone on the fence about the game should definitely make sure to try it while it’s free on Xbox. As a reminder, anyone interested has until October 22 to give the game a go.
Diablo 4‘s free trial on Xbox comes at a strategic time. Diablo 4 just launched Season 2, Season of Blood, which gives players fresh story content to complete, new vampire adversaries to fight, and a new vampire hunter ally. Diablo 4 Season of Blood had a rough start thanks to a last-minute delay to its start time, but it otherwise has been much better received than the disastrous Season 1.
Diablo 4 Season 1 made a lot of controversial changes to the action-RPG. The backlash to Diablo 4 Season 1 was so severe that Blizzard had to host special Campfire Chats and even wasted little time rolling back the changes. It will be interesting to see if Season 2 is able to repair the damage done by Season 1, and if it’s enough not only to convince lapsed players to return to the game, but to get people trying the 10-hour free trial on Xbox to buy the full game.
Diablo 4 is out now for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
