Blizzard has confirmed that Diablo 4 will not have an offline mode. Speaking during a panel held at BlizzCon 2019, lead designer Angela Del Priore addressed a question about whether the game can be played solo and whether it will support "a full offline mode." While multiplayer won't be mandatory, you will need an online connection to play.

"We are not going to support an offline mode," Del Priore replied. "But as I said before, nothing in Diablo 4 is going to require partying up. You can play solo and dungeons are private. Campaign quest areas will [also] remain private."

This shouldn't be much of a surprise to Diablo players on PC, especially those that played Diablo 3, which has required an internet connection to function since its launch. This is also the case for the majority of Blizzard's other major franchises, such as World of Warcraft, Overwatch, and StarCraft.

However, console versions of Diablo 3 do include the ability to play offline. Diablo 4 is in development for PS4 and Xbox One, as well as PC. In a statement to GameSpot, a Blizzard representative has confirmed that Diablo 4 will be online-only across all versions, including PS4 and Xbox One.

At BlizzCon, we played some of Diablo 4 and felt that the "live" aspect of the game introduced something new to the franchise. The return to the series' darker, occult roots is also one of the most distinct aspects of the game. You can read our full Diablo 4 impressions for more.