Diablo IV

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

If people are underwhelmed by the bow rogue I hope they spruce it up. The og rogue retread is what I am most interested in this game, other than the story elements.

Blizzard has said that not every class will be equally strong before the end game. In particular, the barbarian won't shine before getting their hands on multiple legendary weapons, at which point, they will become brutes.

My guess is that rogues are in a similar spot.

 

[schneeland]

Just adding to what Whizbang said: Eurogamer has an interview that sheds a bit of light on things like queues, dungeon design and class balance - "Beta has become a twisted word": Blizzard responds to Diablo 4 early access feedback

 

[Haplo781]

I definitely had the most fun playing barbarian. Shame I played it last.

Will definitely play it first this weekend.

 

[Haplo781]

It's pretty weird, given all the church shenanigans. (Blizzard is a firm believer, across franchises, that both the Light and demons are bad news.)

Seems pretty obvious they're gonna pull a switcheroo and make archangel whosit the big bad here.

 

[Ruin Explorer]

Yeah, my wife is already starting to get the shakes and asking how we can get into the full beta.

My wife was a much more serious D2 player than me back in the day, like she used to hang out and PK PKers and rescue people and stuff, before we met, I have to admit I was a bit intimidated by that back when I was like 23! She actually got me playing "properly" on the Seasonal Ladder and stuff - and I found I enjoyed that way more than the default approach.

So I'm hoping if D4 is as good as it promises to be we can play it together - we used to play a fair bit of PoE but she got less interested when GGG stopped doing Races and stuff, and just focused on back-to-back seasons.

I would guess that a paladin/crusader will show up either in a major patch or an expansion focusing on the church and/or the fall-out of whatever happens to them in the main storyline.

Hope so - I mean, Blizzard loves money so they probably will! Especially as D4 seems to be shaping up slightly better than expected.

Blizzard has said that not every class will be equally strong before the end game. In particular, the barbarian won't shine before getting their hands on multiple legendary weapons, at which point, they will become brutes.

Makes sense - it was certainly true in D2 (well, not multiple, but a couple usually) and this seems like it's most evoking D2 in terms of vibes.

 

[Aldarc]

Seems pretty obvious they're gonna pull a switcheroo and make archangel whosit the big bad here.

I have not really liked the tone of Diablo's story since the Richard Knaak books, which were released between Diablo 2 and Diablo 3. In particular, I find the cynicism and negativity regarding angels as well as the superpowered nephalim shenanigans to be a bit too much for me.

It's pretty clear, however, that both Inarius and Lillith are done for in this expansion. The opening begins by explicitly telling us that this game is the story of their downfall.

 

[Andvari]

There are a bunch of things that don't jive with me concerning Diablo IV, but perhaps some of those will be addressed before release. I played a lot of Diablo 1 and 2, and briefly enjoyed Diablo 3.

Right now, I'm just waiting for the System Shock remaster, which releases at the end of this month. That should keep me busy for a while.

 

[deganawida]

I have not really liked the tone of Diablo's story since the Richard Knaak books, which were released between Diablo 2 and Diablo 3. In particular, I find the cynicism and negativity regarding angels as well as the superpowered nephalim shenanigans to be a bit too much for me.

It's pretty clear, however, that both Inarius and Lillith are done for in this expansion. The opening begins by explicitly telling us that this game is the story of their downfall.

Glad I’m not the only one. I also didn’t care for his contributions to Warcraft.

 

[Aldarc]

Glad I’m not the only one. I also didn’t care for his contributions to Warcraft.

There are some good ideas in the books - (1) humans being descended from the unions of angels and demons and (2) Rathma as the son of Inarius and Lillith - but IMHO the books have had an overall negative impact on the character of the franchise.

IMO, the idea that the nephalim are even more powerful than demons and angels actually undercuts humanity's struggles against outside forces and the gothic horror tone of the setting. It turned our human characters into superheroes.

Moreover, I think that one problem that Diablo and other similar franchises* face when it comes to their tone is that when they depict everyone as being just as bad (angels included) then it creates a sense that the world isn't worth saving. That's one thing that I would like to see in Diablo 4. Give me a sense that this world and its people are worth saving. Don't just repeatedly show me how terrible the world is. Don't just repeatedly tell me that angels are just as bad as demons. (Hooray for false equivalances in fantasy games!)

* This is also one of my criticisms of the TTRPG Shadow of the Demon Lord. It definitely reflects Schwalb's depression. Indeed, the more that I learned about the setting and its secrets, the more I felt that the Demon Lord should win and let the world be destroyed.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I have not really liked the tone of Diablo's story since the Richard Knaak books, which were released between Diablo 2 and Diablo 3. In particular, I find the cynicism and negativity regarding angels as well as the superpowered nephalim shenanigans to be a bit too much for me.

I was pleased to not hear the word "nephalim" once in Act I of Diablo IV.