Sinister billboard as wildfire smoke chokes NYC: ‘Welcome to hell’

It was a hellish experience.

A video game billboard in Times Square went viral Wednesday after pollution from the raging Canadian wildfires bathed the Big Apple in orange.

The display in question promotes the new “Diablo IV” game and features Lilith, one of the game’s antagonists, and perfectly captures the city’s mood.

“WELCOME TO HELL, NEW YORK,” reads the promotion as the sinister, horned Queen of the Succubi — already bathed in red — stares down intently with a blanket of orange sky as a backdrop.

A picture of the promotion, posted on Twitter around 2:20 p.m. Wednesday, has gained more than 8 million views and topped 97,000 likes just 24 hours later.

The Post reached out to game developer Blizzard Entertainment for comment.

Several online viewers found the picture entertaining — and fitting.

“That is unfortunate timing, lol,” commented one user.

“Top Tier Marketing,” joked a second person.

“Whoever timed this ‘Diablo IV’ billboard in NYC is either the smartest or luckiest person on earth,” cracked entertainment news site Dexerto.

Lulu Cheng Meservey, an executive vice president at Activision Blizzard, responded to the tweet.

“I would like to clarify that Blizzard has no affiliation or partnership with the wildfires in Canada,” Meservey wrote. “In fact we are firmly against wildfires and condemn them in the strongest terms.”

Mayor Eric Adams told reporters Wednesday that the pollution in the Big Apple’s air had reached 484 out of a 500 scale.

The pollution was so bad that, around 2 p.m., a bright orange hue had enveloped the city, and photo-sensitive lights in Central Park subsequently had turned on.

One meteorologist claimed the air quality index was even worse than after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Several Broadway shows were forced to cancel performances due to the dangerous air.