Diablo IV could receive a new max difficulty in the future, as a dataminer has discovered evidence of a World Tier V in the game's files.

Currently, World Tier IV is Diablo IV's highest difficulty, intended for players level 70-100. Monsters are at their most challenging at this world tier and overcome 40% of a player's resistances, but also reward more experience and gold. Players are also more likely to find build-defining Unique items in World Tier IV.

But it seems like World Tier IV might not always be the game's top-difficulty. DatamineARPG, who runs a Ko-fi dedicated to datamining for clues about future content in games like Diablo Immortal and Diablo IV, has discovered files that make it pretty clear that a World Tier V was, or potentially still is, in the works. Official World Tier V artwork does exist in the game's files, though it could still be a placeholder image. There's also evidence of a marker that may be pointing towards a capstone dungeon in Fractured Peaks needed to unlock World Tier V.

Unfortunately, that's about all there is to go on, and it's currently unclear what benefits and challenges playing on World Tier V could potentially bring. However, there are some other interesting tidbits turned up by DatamineARPG, including evidence of three new ranks of gemstones. While rank six doesn't have a name, it seems rank seven and rank eight gemstones will be called "magnificent" and "perfect" respectively, though those names are still subject to change. There's also evidence of some features that could be coming alongside Diablo IV's first season, like a seasonal stash tab.

While there are certainly some max-level players who are already making short work of the enemies in World Tier IV, it may still be some time before more casual players catch up. Introducing a new world tier might also mean raising the game's max level to something higher than the current cap of 100. For comparison, Diablo III featured 16 different difficulties, while Diablo Immortal, which uses a similar world tier difficulty system, currently has eight.

It's still unclear when players could potentially see a World Tier V, though the most likely timing would be around one of the game's seasons or alongside the launch of a new expansion. Diablo IV's first season will kick off in mid-July, and developer Blizzard has already confirmed Diablo IV has two expansions in the works.

Diablo IV is the fastest-selling game in the company's history, according to Blizzard, though it has not officially revealed sales figures. Blizzard hasn't wasted any time delivering hotfixes and balance change patches for Diablo IV since its launch, and overall the always-online experience has been relatively smooth. In GameSpot's Diablo IV review, we said Blizzard's new ARPG "confidently delivers gameplay that has been carried forward and refined from both Diablo II and III, while also establishing a strong foundation for the franchise's future."