If you were hoping to see the gates of the Burning Hells fling open during the holiday season, you’re going to be disappointed. Blizzard announced today that Diablo III will not make its hopeful 2011 launch. The game will instead launch in early 2012 to give the devs a little more time to polish the game and make sure that it’s ready for primetime.

"With every game we make, the temptation is always very strong to launch as soon as possible. However, we didn't put so many years of work into Diablo III to release a game that was almost ready," said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. "The beta test is going very well, and we look forward to making the most of the extra time we're taking to deliver an experience that lives up to our vision for the game and the expectations of our players. Next year is going to be an incredibly busy one for Blizzard, and we hope an incredibly fun one for Blizzard gamers."

This does come with the good news that the beta test will be extended. Those that chose to opt-in for the testing may still get a chance to join in on one of the additional testing phases planned for the game before its launch next year.

Sources:

Diablo III website

Blizzard Press Release