SHANGHAI, April 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Blizzard
Entertainment, Inc. and NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) today
announced that Sanctuary's gates have been thrown open to all
Chinese heroes, as open beta testing for Blizzard Entertainment's
award-winning action role-playing game Diablo
III®: Reaper of Souls™
is now live in China. Players
throughout China are now able to
join the army of nephalem and embark on a challenging journey to
save Sanctuary from the demonic forces of the Burning
Hells!
An array of new features and highly replayable content is
included with the open beta test. The Crusader, a veritable war
machine made human, has joined the game's other five playable
classes -- barbarian, witch doctor,
wizard, monk and demon hunter.
In addition, players are able to unlock Act V, the latest chapter
of Diablo III: Reaper of Souls, and embark on a dark and perilous
journey through terrifying landscapes; explore the legendary city
of Westmarch; and slay countless minions, each hell-bent on
bringing their heroic quest to a grisly end -- all culminating in a climactic
confrontation with Malthael, the Angel of Death. Players can also
unlock Adventure Mode, a new game mode that gives players the
freedom to go anywhere and slay anything.
"We want to thank our closed beta testers for helping us put the
finishing touches on the Chinese version of Diablo III: Reaper of
Souls," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and
co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment. "We're pleased to now be able
to welcome players across China
into the open beta, and we can't wait to see everyone in
Sanctuary."
"We're very excited to be launching the Diablo III: Reaper of
Souls open beta test in China
through the joint efforts of Blizzard and NetEase and the
incredible support of passionate Chinese players," said
William Ding, CEO and founder of
NetEase, Inc. "The NetEase team will continue to work closely with
Blizzard to ensure that Chinese gamers receive the best experience
possible in this truly epic game."
With the start of open beta testing, players will be able to
purchase the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls Premium Package or Digital
Deluxe Package for RMB198 or
RMB388, respectively, in the in-game
Shop, unlocking the Crusader class, Act V, Adventure mode, and a
wealth of in-game bonuses.
The Premium Package contains the Crusader class, Act V,
Adventure mode, Face of Death Portrait Frame, 4 additional Stash
Tabs, and 8 additional Character Slots. In addition to all the
content in the Premium package, the Digital Deluxe Package contains
extra in-game bonuses, including Bottled Cloud and Bottled Smoke
Dye, Angelic Wings, Spectral Hound
Minion and Aesthetic Artifacts, a Class Sigil, two World of
Warcraft® in-game companion pets: Fetish Shaman and
Treasure Goblin pets, a set of StarCraft® II
Diablo-themed Battle.net® portraits and Malthael-themed
decals, and a playable hero in Heroes of the Storm™:
Valla the Demon Hunter.
Chinese players who just want to try out the core game
experience will be able to conquer the first four Acts of the
Diablo III campaign and level their characters up to 70 for
free.
In celebration of the China
open beta test, any player who purchases either the Premium Package
or the Digital Deluxe Package in the next 30 days will receive a
special in-game souvenir -- Wings
of Valor. The first 10,000 players who purchase the Digital Deluxe
Package will additionally receive a limited-edition memorial badge,
engraved with a unique serial number, to commemorate the Diablo III
China launch.
Download the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls client now. See
you in Sanctuary!
To learn more details about Diablo III: Reaper of Souls China
open beta testing, please visit the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls
China official site: www.diablo3.com.cn.
About Blizzard Entertainment
Best known for blockbuster hits including World of
Warcraft®and the Warcraft®,
StarCraft®, and
Diablo®franchises, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.
(www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ:
ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment
software renowned for creating some of the industry's most
critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment's track record
includes nineteen #1 games and multiple Game of the Year awards.
The company's online-gaming service, Battle.net, is one of the
largest in the world, with millions of active players.
About NetEase, Inc.
NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) is a leading Internet technology
company in China. Dedicated to
providing online services centered around content, community,
communication and commerce, NetEase develops and operates some of
China's most popular online games,
e-mail and e-commerce services, advertising services, mobile
applications and games and web portals. In partnership with
Blizzard Entertainment, NetEase operates some of the most popular
international online games in China, including World of
Warcraft®, Hearthstone™: Heroes of
Warcraft™, StarCraft®II and Diablo
III®: Reaper of Souls™. For more
information, please visit: http://ir.netease.com/.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements:
Information in this press release that involves Blizzard
Entertainment's and NetEase's expectations, plans, intentions or
strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that
are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties.
These statements are made under the "safe harbor" provisions of the
U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Blizzard
Entertainment and NetEase generally use words such as "outlook,"
"will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans,"
"believes," "may," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate,"
"future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain,"
"scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar
expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that
could cause Blizzard Entertainment's and/or NetEase's actual future
results to differ materially from those expressed in the
forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but
are not limited to, sales levels of Blizzard Entertainment's titles
generally, the popularity of Diablo III among Chinese
players and the effect of future expansion sets on the game, shifts
in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current
macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the
interactive game market, the risk that Shanghai EaseNet will not be
able to operate Diablo III, Heroes of the Storm, StarCraft II,
World of Warcraft, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft or other games
licensed by it from Blizzard Entertainment for a period of time or
permanently due to possible governmental actions, the risk that
Shanghai EaseNet or NetEase will be subject to penalties or
operating restrictions imposed by governmental authorities in the
PRC resulting from the operations of their online games, including
suspension of their Internet service or other penalties, the risk
that changes in Chinese government regulation of the online game
market may limit future growth of Blizzard's or NetEase's revenue
in China or cause revenue to
decline; industry competition and competition from other forms of
entertainment, rapid changes in technology, industry standards and
consumer preferences, including interest in specific genres such as
real-time strategy, action–role-playing and massively multiplayer
online games, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against
Blizzard Entertainment and/or NetEase, maintenance of relationships
with key personnel, customers, licensees, licensors, vendors and
third-party developers, including the ability to attract, retain
and develop key personnel and developers who can create high
quality "hit" titles, counterparty risks relating to customers,
licensees, licensors and manufacturers, domestic and international
economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign
exchange rates and tax rates, and the identification of suitable
future acquisition opportunities, and the other factors identified
in the risk factors section of Activision Blizzard's most recent
annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on
Form 10-Q and of NetEase's most recent annual report on Form 20-F
and other filings and submissions with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements in this release
are based upon information available to Blizzard Entertainment,
Activision Blizzard and NetEase, as the case may be, as of the date
of this release, and none of such parties assumes any obligation to
update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking
statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be
incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future
performance of Blizzard Entertainment, Activision Blizzard or
NetEase and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors,
some of which are beyond their respective control and may cause
actual results to differ materially from current expectations.
For further information contact:
Rob Hilburger
Vice President, Global Communications
Blizzard Entertainment
(+1) 949-242-8404
rhilburger@blizzard.com
Roger Sun
Public Relations Director
Blizzard China
(+86) 21-3133 0700
rsun@blizzard.com
Cassia Curran
NetEase, Inc.
(+86) 571-8985-2076
cassia@corp.netease.com
Brandi Piacente
NetEase Investor Relations
(+1) 212-481-2050
brandi@corp.netease.com
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SOURCE NetEase, Inc.