Diablo IVDiablo IV Early Access ended earlier today. The past weekend had been a blast for all who got their hands on the game. Blizzard gave us the full cinematic experience from the Prologue and Act 1, three of the five available classes upon release (the Barbarian, Rogue, and Sorcerer), and a maximum level cap of 25 per character. I finished the game with a Sorcerer (Level 25), though I had a good time trying out the other classes too (Barbarian and Rogue up to level 13-ish).
But honestly, Diablo IV is shaping up to be the Diablo sequel I’ve been waiting for in the past couple of decades.
Yes, I’m that old. I played and replayed the original Diablo back in 1997 over and over until Diablo II came out. While I loved Diablo III (here’s my review back in 2012!), I kind of missed the original dark feel of the predecessors. Diablo III felt too colourful, and while the gameplay was awesome, there was still that missing feeling.
Diablo IV is definitely the answer to all my (and your) prayers. It’s dark, it’s bloody, it’s full of gore, and has really good and epic storytelling. The Diablo IV prologue is insanely good and satisfying to play through, with a mysterious and horror twist that you’d expect from playing a Diablo game. Yes, it’s that good. All conversations are voice-acted, and sometimes you’ll be switched to either a cutscene using the game engine or be pampered by one of the best teams in crafting cinematic animations.
Make sure to check out the Opening Cinematics and especially the Official Release Date trailer.
Okay, back with the game.
Diablo IV offers character creation and customisations, going even further than just choosing your class and gender. While not as good as Cyberpunk 2077, you can still customise a lot of things, including markings and accessories like earrings. You will also see your character up close in the game cutscenes, along with the armour and weapons you are equipping.
Thankfully, if you still want to look good and wear that unique, great-stats equipment that looks horrible, you can use the game’s transmog system (like I first encountered in Harry Potter: Hogwarts Legacy) to alter the appearance with other equipment that you’ve salvaged before.
Like the previous Diablo series, you’ll have plenty of items to find and loot of different rarities like Magic, Rare, Unique, and Legendary. Diablo’s looting system is definitely the one that will keep you hooked on playing the game over and over, trying to collect better gear that suits your character’s build and playstyle.
Each class will have a few different build paths that you can choose as you distribute your skill points each time you level up. Each class plays differently and has different survivability skills. Getting Legendary gears can help you to get better stats and unique attributes, and the loot will drop from the enemy’s mini bosses (the Elite) every now and then.
Apart from the main storyline, there are events that can happen as you explore the world (you can do this solo, with friends, or random strangers who happen to be in the area without grouping up – which is nice). Completing this event will yield you some rewards, and if you can do the secondary objective, you’ll get even better rewards.
TherThere are also mini dungeons and strongholds to explore, along with side quests. The Malnok stronghold was available in Early Access, giving players a small taste of what’s to come. I appreciate the side quests in Diablo IV as they are not just random tasks where you need to kill a certain number of monsters or deliver an item from point A to point B. Each quest has its own unique storyline and character to delve into. Completing some side quests can also lead to related quests and thicken the plot even further.
There are also big, World Bosses to tackle with many and the team has given one for us to tackle during the Early Impression and Open Beta later – Ashava. She unfortunately only spawns at specific time frame and I couldn’t find the time to during the early access.
This weekend, you can experience the game for free during the Open Beta. I suggest giving the game a try to see if you like it or not. If you’re a fan of Diablo and are unsure of what to expect or might get put off by something, give it a chance for the entire weekend. See if it changes your opinion. If you haven’t played any Diablo games before (I know a few gamers who haven’t), give it a shot and decide for yourself.
I had a friend who wasn’t considering purchasing Diablo IV (he played Diablo III), but after trying the Early Access version last weekend, he changed his mind.
The Necromancer and Druid classes will be available in Open Beta so if you were in Early Access, you might want to replay the game with these classes. See you at the Open Beta!
