You know what? I’m more interested now
Diablois such a weird series: and I vibed with that feeling since the very first game. I had zero idea of what to expect, and didn’t understandthe strange history of theHellfire“expansion”until many years after its release. By the timeDiablo 2rolled around my little crew ofDiablo-playing-friends was around 20 strong, and it was a bonafide hit that people still play today.
ButDiablo 3changed things considerably. Blizzard was already changing in terms of its perception as a bulletproof company, and the Auction House debacle was a sign of trouble to come for the publisher. In the end,D3sold very well, but the team had a lot to prove when they first announcedDiablo 4to the world. So far, based on some hands-on time with the game, I think they’re doing just that.
You can choose between more or less guidance: depending on your experience with the series
My build went up to level 25 with three classes (Barbarian, Sorcerer, Rogue), and contained still-in-development content from Act 1. As an FYI, my PS5 copy was watermarked: and I couldn’t use my own screens or footage. And with that out of the way, onto impressions!
Smartly,Diablo 4is aiming to pick up players of all playstyles: lapsed fans, hardcore folks, and newcomers. Immediately I was given the option of toggling on/off most tutorials, depending on your experience with the series. If you want, you can dive into the game’s new skill tree system immediately, which I did with my “main,” the Barbarian (something I never really do in a coreDiabloas a first character).
Here are the three options, with all the specializations you’re able to choose from:
Most of my time was spent with the Barbarian, which I had a lot of fun with. You can whirlwind and leap still, and augment each individual skill/ability with a little spice (like extra damage or more utility). On PS5 by default most of your abilities are linked to the face buttons and the triggers: with a dedicated dodge button.
Bringing in Blizzard’s time withDiablo 3on consoles, this is now a full-on mechanic in every build (PC included), and charges will increase over time (governed by a cooldown period). I immediately noticed some enemies are designed around this skill, which made a lot of the typically rote fights a little more interesting and engaging.
Respeccing (changing your build) is in. Initially it’s free and can be done anywhere; with a gold price associated with it. I also got the chance to speak to Joseph Piepiora (Associate Game Director), Adam “AZ” Jackson (Lead Class Designer), and Ash Sweetring (Dungeon Producer) about class spread, and learned how the team went about approachingDiablo 4‘s class philosophy:
Difficulty settings follow a world tier system
We’re moving into world tiers, asDiablo 4continues to incorporate more open world game design into the series. “Adventurer” is tier 1 (the lowest/easiest), and “Veteran” is tier 2. You can increase your tier at specific statues (usually in hubs), or on the title screen: and doing so will add more challenging enemies, better drops, and increased XP and gold (the usual stuff).
By default (at this current time in the game’s development cycle), you can swap between the two freely, but the rest are locked. Here’s the full list available to us at the moment:
Each of these tiers from nightmare on requires players to beat a prerequisite dungeon at the previous tier (so in the case of Nightmare, you’d have to play on Veteran). It seems pretty straightforward, and as aDiabloplayer, I swapped it to Veteran tier right away, and it was manageable. It’ll be fun trying to break into higher tiers at lower levels.
The mood feels a lot likeDiablo 2
Playing through the first Act, I felt tinges ofDiablo 2in more ways than one. The design is a lot darker, and the story in general feels more dire. The intro showcased a more helpless/beaten down protagonist (they were huddled in a cave, freezing, with a dead mount), which I dug right away. I mean within minutes you’re kicking some wildlife ass, but among that, you’ll come across deserted and broken down cabins and towns. NPCs ask you to prove your worth instead of jumping right into the role of the chosen one straight away, likeD3did. Lilith, the new big bad, also brings an air of freshness to the game, as they’re actually doing hands-on work in the story instead of being relegated to a mysterious force you meet basically at the end.
After seeing this take in action, I dug into it more with Associate Game Director Joseph Piepiora:
There’s a decent chunk of things to do
When scouring through the Act 1 map, I came across numerous micro-dungeons and random encounters/activities. The classic “elite jumbled up ability” enemy types are still present, but the map feels so much bigger now that there’s more of them. Dungeon Producer Ash Sweetring noted in our interview that it could take players “around 45-50 hours” just to complete the campaign, with a lot more to do after that.
There’s still a lot of “what ifs” withDiablo 4. The team stressed again that premium purchases will be restricted to just cosmetics: but we’ve heard that before. From a pure gameplay standpoint,Diablo 4also needs to keep things up, and maintain that tension throughout every act. And the endgame (which was hyped again in this media session) needs to deliver. We’ll see what happens, but I’ll be more inclined to be there day one after my time with it.
