As always, we'll give you a two week notice before S18 ends. Patch 2.6.7 will land shortly after that, and the Season will begin after the patch. Exactly how long passes in between can be a bit variable (based on submissions processes and release client generation), which is why we don't announce exact dates in advance.
I don't think anyone assumed it wouldn't be before the end of the year though lol
I've seen a few folks theorize the holidays will get in the way. That's not the intention. Plus we have a digital goodie to get in the game before December 31, 2019, so, you know, that has to happen too. :)
Thanks for the update, and I know that this is such a personal request, but usually when season starts is the best weekend for Diablo (community chats going crazy, lots of players, LFG, etc). Also if you want to stream or create some content before that weekend, planning is key, also grocery shopping for 24 hour stream (ppl looking at you like “are you going to drink 10 energy drinks tonight?” is the best). For some of us we need to request days off in advance. If we can get more than a 2 weeks notice that would be awesome.
TLDR: If we can get more than a 2 weeks notice for season 19 that would make a big difference that weekend.
Two weeks prior to Season end is the most we can reasonably provide based on development necessities and historical experiences. This is also why we can't provide launch dates. As with any live entertainment (tv, concerts, and yes, online games), things can, and eventually will, go wrong.
We know folks try to plan around Season start times, which is why we try to provide as much notice as possible. Realistically though, we have to operate off our development needs and remain flexible should something go wrong. Quality is going to trump convenience in this case; we'd rather wait to release something that's more polished than risk promising a date/time only for the experience to be less enjoyable.
Nevalistis
Before the end of the year.
As always, we'll give you a two week notice before S18 ends. Patch 2.6.7 will land shortly after that, and the Season will begin after the patch. Exactly how long passes in between can be a bit variable (based on submissions processes and release client generation), which is why we don't announce exact dates in advance.
Nevalistis
I've seen a few folks theorize the holidays will get in the way. That's not the intention. Plus we have a digital goodie to get in the game before December 31, 2019, so, you know, that has to happen too. :)
Nevalistis
Two weeks prior to Season end is the most we can reasonably provide based on development necessities and historical experiences. This is also why we can't provide launch dates. As with any live entertainment (tv, concerts, and yes, online games), things can, and eventually will, go wrong.
We know folks try to plan around Season start times, which is why we try to provide as much notice as possible. Realistically though, we have to operate off our development needs and remain flexible should something go wrong. Quality is going to trump convenience in this case; we'd rather wait to release something that's more polished than risk promising a date/time only for the experience to be less enjoyable.
Best laid plans and all that.