Diablo 4 has a two week-early 'launch trailer' set to a Billie Eilish song that is remarkably not 'Bad Guy'
It's certainly a gameplay trailer, but is it launch?
As a man approaching the age of thirty, I endeavor not to have an opinion on pop sensation Billie Eilish—I leave that to people who use TikTok and debate whether TV shows are "based" or not. As a games journalist, however, I am required to have an opinion on Diablo 4 and its gameplay launch trailer, which features combat from the isometric action RPG set to Eilish's "You Should See Me in a Crown." This trailer is largely an object of mild confusion and fascination to me.
After some buildup, the beat drops with a Barbarian doing a "this is Sparta" kick to a rude dude, quickly cutting between explosive gameplay snippets in tune with the song. We get to peep all those cool class powers, and I remain a fan of the Druid's bear form despite it being, apparently, un-bear-able for my colleague Chris Livingston in the first beta. We are also informed by the trailer that "Hell welcomes all"—a nice message of love and acceptance from the realm of metaphysical torment in a time of increasing social tension. This message may actually be referring to the game's robust character creator and varied build options.
Given the imperious and confrontational lyrics of "You Should See Me in a Crown," I would assume that, in this context, it's from the perspective of, or meant to be associated with, Diablo 4's box art villain Lilith, who's like a Lady Diablo, Diablo's cousin or sister or something. It's 2023, and really about time that we finally had a Lady Diablo, but I do wonder if we will ever "see her in a crown" due to her pronounced horns. This perhaps explains why she is so angry, and trying to destroy the world of Sanctuary.
Presumably the question of Lilith's crown, as well as other pressing lore issues will be answered when Diablo 4 launches on June 6. We're pretty split on the upcoming ARPG—PCG associate editor Tyler Colp found it to be "the Diablo he's been waiting for" in an earlier preview, while in the latest beta online editor Fraser Brown did not vibe with World boss Ashava and senior editor Robin Valentine found that the class balance is the least of the upcoming game's issues.