I think this tops the Megan Fox thing. Last week, Blizzard dropped an announcement asking fans to "donate to the blood harvest", allowing them to earn some in-game swag for Diablo 4.
Here's the run-down. Until November 20, US players over 18 can submit proof of blood donation to any blood donation clinic, "such as a confirmation email given to them by their chosen donation site." Once the donation has been received, the amount of blood donated'll be logged and added to the tally. Which is a nicely-animated blood fountain. Lovely.
"All players that own [Diablo 4] will receive the in-game rewards once the tiered milestones are reached," reads the site's FAQ, so even if you aren't willing to spill your vital fluids for Lilith, you'll still reap the rewards of your fellow players' sacrifice. The end goal is getting 666 quarts of blood. For reference, the average human being has about 6 quarts in their whole body, and the typical blood donation is 0.6 quarts. That's a lotta blood.
The first milestone, which has already been reached, is a set of bloodpetal cosmetics. I'm a particular fan of the Bloodpetal Heart, which—I mean, look at that thing. If a magic-slinging goth approached me in a tundra holding an actual human heart, I'd probably give up then and there. Or offer my hand in marriage, it really depends on the day.
At 66% (which is 439.56 quarts Yono all app of blood, by my count) players will unlock the Loch Raeth Maor Barbarian Armor Cosmetic. Not as fun as those weapon skins, but this is all for a good cause. Lastly, at 100%, players will get a cool horse. Oh and also a chance to win a PC infused with actual human blood.
"Yep, REAL human blood," reads the FAQ, before going into the thing's specs. It's pretty beefy.
- Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090.
- CPU: Intel Core i9-13900K.
- 64 GB DDR5 RAM.
- 3TB Gen5 NVMe M.2 SSD storage.
- It's got human blood in it somewhere.
Unnervingly, the website neglects to mention precisely how the PC is infused. Liquid cooling feels like my first guess, but that seems unsanitary. All that's promised is that it'll be in there, somewhere, powering your PC with demonic energy. Blizzard has not revealed whether proximity to a crucifix will tank your frames.
The PC will be given to a lucky player who enters a sweepstakes. "Everyone over 18 in the United States, even non-donors, will have the opportunity to enter for a chance to win by posting a pledge of loyalty" in the form of posting "#DiabloBloodHarvest" on Instagram and Twitter. The sweepstakes will open for entries once the goal of 666 quarts is reached.
In all seriousness, while there's obviously plenty of marketing intent behind all of this, it's still doing some tangible good. Just last month, the American Red Cross declared a national blood shortage. "There are several reasons for the drop in donor turnout—one of the busiest travel seasons on record, back-to-school activities—and back-to-back months of almost constant climate-driven disasters." A PR stunt is a PR stunt, but at least this one's for a good cause, even if it's all in aid of chasing bloody cosmetics.