The Diablo IV beta gave me a preview of one of the biggest releases of the year. Is the next episode of Blizzard’s iconic series worth the wait?
Until a few weeks ago, my game plans didn’t include the Diablo 4 open beta. However, the closer the deadline got, the more appealing the game seemed. I finally gave it a try, spent a few hours in the game and… I’m afraid it will end up like all the other gaas (i.e. “games as a service”, although I prefer the term “gaming device”).
For a long time, Blizzard has been synonymous with quality in the PC arena. However, the company has had a long string of questionable decisions that have caused a lot of outrage and backlash, causing even diehard fans to start doubting that its new games are anything to look forward to.
When we first saw Diablo 4 after years of uncertainty, the initial excitement quickly faded. Of course, on the one hand, we had a great Diablo 2 remaster, which already hooked me for hundreds of hours, but on the other hand, somewhere in my head, I still remembered Diablo 3 on PC, or the wound a little fresher: Diablo Immortal, which I don’t even want to talk about.
The atmosphere of Diablo IV is strongly reminiscent of Diablo 2
However, it’s mid-March, the closed beta for Diablo IV pre-orders is slowly winding down, and contrary to my original plans, I’ve been spending a few hours in Sanctuary, completing the demo story, checking out the Side Activities and Somewhere Along By the way, my opinion of this game has changed.
Besides staring at the server queue screen for two hours, my first impressions of Diablo 4 they were… I would say “moderately negative”.” I was surprised how bad the game looked on PS5, the start was pretty boring and I didn’t find the gameplay that engaging. I was already thinking that I should probably cancel the pre-order and leave. with Final Fantasy XVI, which comes out the same month.
However, the next day, Diablo IV magically got prettier. So here’s the fun part: for some reason the game was using the lowest quality textures, as well as having dynamic resolution issues. Beta status aside, however, we can still expect Diablo IV to come out as a highly polished product.
Dynamic camera in featured scenes is a great idea
What Blizzard delivers in terms of gameplay is surprisingly satisfying and gives genuine hope that this time around we’ll succeed without gigantic post-launch pivots and desperate salvage efforts to salvage the entire game. After a rocky start, the fight is finally starting to take on an engaging shape.though some classes seem to lag behind in combat prowess at this point (barbarian and mage are polar opposites in utility).
The skill tree, however, offers a few options and isn’t as over the top as in Path of Exile (in that game you get a doctorate or you shouldn’t be playing it). I also loved the atmosphere of the first act. You can see the pervasive desperation which, combined with the Catholic religion, creates a unique experience, providing a far more compelling adventure than Diablo 3. Yes, Diablo 4 definitely delivers on the promise of a Diablo-like feel.
The fight is initially slow.
Let’s briefly talk about the content delivered by Blizzard. There are many in the beta itself. We have many side quests and minor locations to visit, complemented by extensive dungeons often associated with different quests. On the other hand, hard not to have the impression that most of them were made by copying and pasting. Going MMO-lite has always been the only logical direction to develop this genre (at least in my opinion), so it doesn’t surprise me that Diablo 4 is exactly that. The constant presence of other players, regional events that come and go, special bosses that appear at certain times – that’s what it’s all about now.
And as I was thinking about Diablo 4 during yesterday’s hike, I slowly realized that Blizzard’s beloved gaming-as-a-service direction carries a clear stigma. Just look at the market and see how few games have managed to succeed – even by a recognizable franchise, that wasn’t guaranteed (the financial failure of Marvel’s Avengers is one example). Diablo 4 could offer a lot of content on launch day (assuming the other acts will be as rich as the first). The mark of Blizzard is lo suficientemente fuerte como para survivir incluso a los problems del servidor desde el primer día, como lo demuestra el lanzamiento de Diablo 3 y el error 37. Por lo tanto, todo será decidido por el soporte posterior al lanzamiento que reciba the game.
Over time though, it grew on me
However, the current model used in this series (expanding the story with new content and minor updates) may not work. Diablo 3 has already shown that it’s not enough to bundle the second DLC and just add shards. Of course, I keep in mind that D3 wasn’t built from scratch like gaas and the studio tried to fix it on the fly. Diablo 4 part of a different place, but at the same time faces much higher expectations. Everything will depend on the frequency of releases and their quality. If Blizzard decides to bail out and stick to releasing new bosses and recycling dungeons, that won’t be enough to sustain the community. Especially since the locations, unlike Diablo 2, are not random in online modes.
Now you can call me a pessimist and say that there is no real indication that Diablo 4 will follow the fate of other gaas games. However, I try to be realistic, and considering the fate of other games as services, there have been more failures than successes, so I reserve the right to be skeptical. Don’t get me wrong, I wish it were different, and in fact, after the beta, my hopes of Diablo 4 actually grown a lot and deciding between playing FF XVI and Blizzard’s new game should be a real dilemma.