New Diablo IV: A Hellishly Engaging Journey Through the Open World of Sanctuary

Fancy something a bit more agile? The Rogue class allows you to zip around the battlefield, delivering significant damage, or you could take on the role of a Sorcerer and cast spells from afar. The Barbarian, a classic from the franchise, unleashes unrestrained fury, transforming you into a weapon-wielding powerhouse that can switch between various weapons in the heat of battle.

Diablo IV is not overly hand-holding, placing trust in players to learn basic controls as they loot crates and corpses while dispatching packs of wolves in the stillness of the woods. Being an isometric game built around a repetitive gameplay loop, I appreciate the multifunctional left-click that facilitates movement, attacks, and looting, resulting in a less taxing dungeon exploration experience.

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The open-world design encourages exploration in Diablo IV
Photo Credit: Blizzard

Shifting toward an open-world approach, Diablo IV embraces exploration, peppering the land with towns populated by NPCs, distressed citizens offering quests, shortcuts, world bosses, and adversarial encounters that enhance the thrill of discovery. Much of this unfolds once you enter Act I, arriving at Kyovashad, a large medieval borough that provides solace from the harsh landscape swayed by Mother Lilith’s allure.

Diablo IV review: Narrative

During the Prologue, we first encounter these misguided followers as we approach a turbulent barn to find a lunatic monk babbling. Here, we meet the warm-hearted residents of a quaint inn, who offer hospitality and nourishment while others propose to furnish armament and fully restore our health. In short, we are tasked with eliminating a demonic presence in some ruins located to the north, a mission we successfully complete, leading to a celebration in our honor.

However, reality soon blurs, and we discover our drinks have been laced with something sinister. The sequence meticulously reveals the frenzied villagers’ fervor for Lilith, a well-orchestrated trap intended to sacrifice our drugged bodies. Fortunately, we are rescued by the deranged monk, who turns out to be a priest who had also succumbed to the same fate, though now much clearer in mind. This unexpected twist brings a refreshing spark to an otherwise typical good versus evil narrative, with moments popping up throughout the main storyline that kept me engaged.

Most of the plot elements in Diablo IV are fairly predictable, accompanied by a disjointed structure that has you primarily pursuing Lilith across five vast territories. While that’s the overarching goal, I found the side missions within these areas largely filler, with repetitive tasks that unnecessarily extend gameplay. The characters often put themselves in danger due to their naivety, becoming a growing source of annoyance.

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Lilith’s creeping influence is amplified by her entrancing voice that sways both mortals and immortals
Photo Credit: Screenshot/ Rahul Chettiyar

For the most part, Lilith remains shrouded in mystery, frequently watching from the shadows, manipulating the stakes for Sanctuary’s fate with her ability to inspire malice in human hearts. Her theatrical ominous presence and sultry voice acting effectively convey her seductive powers, softly whispering and bending both mortals and immortals to her will. These moments truly stood out for me, although I can’t help but wonder if their impact stems from their scarcity.

Along the way, we form a bond of trust with Lorath Nahr, a hermitic figure who believes we’ve forged a peculiar connection with Lilith, eventually helping us navigate to the sprawling Kyovashad. He appears at select junctures during the campaign, assisting in battle while gradually revealing secrets on how to confront the Blessed Mother. What truly makes Lorath’s storyline entertaining for me was his familiar gruff, rumbling voice with a Yorkshire accent that would surely resonate with fans of A24 Films. It’s Ralph Ineson! Yes, the actor from The Witch and the voice talent behind The Green Knight plays a key role in Diablo IV’s tale. I couldn’t help but fanboy as soon as I recognized him — fidgeting in my seat with an exhilarated grin as I listened to his soothing baritone. He’s quite possibly the only character whose dialogue I didn’t skip, which speaks volumes considering my concern with the narrative pacing.

Diablo IV review: Open-world, Progression, and Gameplay

Blizzard has achieved a remarkable aesthetic that is darkly impressive. Stacks of corpses, dismembered limbs, blood pools with decaying organs, bodies on spikes, and Lovecraftian tentacles squirming in grotesque brown sludge — each step immerses you in a deathly atmosphere. This chilling environment spans across ominous landscapes featuring demonic caverns, lush forests filled with perilous wildlife, fetid swamps, and desolate, snow-covered domains. The sheer size of the world compels players to absorb its details willingly or not, especially in the early stages when foot travel is the only option. Yes, mounts become available for smoother movement, but you don’t unlock them until later on.

Diablo 4 doesn’t revolutionize the dungeon-crawling ARPG genre, yet it skillfully blends familiar tropes with its own innovations to deliver a sequel worth playing. The game loop relies heavily on explore-kill-loot dynamics, which, while seemingly repetitive, proves highly addictive. Points of interest—be they random minions, dungeons, or hostile wildlife — are littered throughout, including otherworldly werewolves, animated trees, gigantic humanoid sheep, colossal spiders, and more.

The style and pacing of combat vary depending on your chosen class, but as you progress, you unlock new skills that can dramatically alter your character build. Up to level 50, you frequently consult a web-like skill tree, where pathways branch out, introducing perks that enhance damage and offer new attack options.

Initially drawn to the Necromancer, I planned to hit enemies from a distance and retreat when things got hairy, counting on my undead allies to stall foes. However, with every new weapon and piece of armor I acquired, it wasn’t just my damage output that increased but also my self-assurance. I became less apprehensive about lingering near enemies, feeling confident enough to glug down health potions without hesitation.

As I upgraded my skills, I could spear enemies with bloody lances, unleash lingering zones of blight, and even make corpses explode, dealing substantial damage to adjacent adversaries. With the Corpse Tendril ability, I could perform crowd control, activating it on a deceased enemy to unleash tentacles that ensnare and draw foes closer. By learning how different abilities synergize, you have the freedom to craft a unique build that adapts to the brutality of Sanctuary. The options are vast.

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The skill tree offers new attacks that can be tailored to your style
Photo Credit: Screenshot/ Rahul Chettiyar

However, the shift to an open-world model in Diablo IV creates some scaling challenges beginning mid-game. While certain zones have minimum level thresholds, the game adjusts enemy levels dynamically to match yours. For example, if you’re apprehensive about tackling a level 30 mission with a level 20 character, you might spend time exploring the vast landscape, completing other tasks, and then return with a level 35 character. Yet, once you return, the game resizes that mission to level 35 as well, increasing enemy stats, which can diminish the sense of accomplishment. It’s a frustrating aspect that undermines the immersion of being a lone warrior growing strong enough to conquer formidable foes.

While you certainly grow more powerful within Diablo IV’s combat framework, some restrictions remain. Permanent upgrades from exploration include crafting health potions and activating Altars of Lilith, eerie statues that grant account-wide stat enhancements. Additionally, there’s the Paragon leveling system designed for end-game content.

The Paragon board becomes available at level 50, where each node allows significant character enhancements in small increments, but I will confess that its design feels chaotic and can be overwhelming to navigate at first.

The inventory system encourages frequent equipment changes
Photo Credit: Screenshot/ Rahul Chettiyar

Managing your inventory is another crucial element in Diablo 4, as the game imposes a limit on how much gear you can carry. Running low on space can be a common issue, prompting you to sift through your inventory to replace found equipment with superior options while keeping older, weaker items. This mechanic, while it may frustrate some, is enjoyable for me because it pays off in the long term. Importantly, all gear—including weapons, rings, amulets, and armor—has durability scores ranging from 0 to 100, which decrease by 10 units upon character death.

Once durability hits zero, the item shatters and becomes useless, which is common during boss encounters when you’re operating under the illusion that you’ll defeat them next. Thus, rather than rushing back to the blacksmith for repairs, you can easily switch to your stored gear that’s slightly less effective.

As you continue, the dungeon-crawling can grow slightly monotonous, especially regarding enemy behavior. It doesn’t take long to identify attack patterns, with most enemies merely pursuing and surrounding you with their sharp weapons. However, combat isn’t exclusively mindless hacking and slashing; the game introduces horned red shamans with unique auras, capable of summoning new foes that prolong your tasks. The AI also shows intelligence, actively pursuing you across rooms.

From a distance, battles can appear chaotic, resembling a burst of color and energy
Photo Credit: Screenshot/ Rahul Chettiyar

You may face foes with large shields, hulking Revenants wielding swords, or Blood Mages launching projectiles from afar. Encounters escalate quickly, pushing you toward defeating dungeon bosses, which can often be tiresome, as they are massive damage sponges. Another grievance I have with Diablo IV is its side quests, as they tend to feel like a checklist of tasks where NPCs send you from point A to point B, requesting a specific item. Along the way, they may ask you to slay various creatures or engage in lengthy dialogues — monotonous activities that beckon you to skip through.

Diablo IV is fundamentally designed as a live service game, with Blizzard planning to support it for years with new seasons, battle passes, and expansions. The term ‘live service’ has gained a negative reputation recently due to poor monetization strategies that often necessitate grindy gameplay, but in this instance, the developers have reassured players that all purchases are strictly cosmetic items.

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Blizzard has assured that all microtransactions will remain cosmetic
Photo Credit: Screenshot/ Rahul Chettiyar

Yes, there is an in-game store where real money is required for transactions, but it’s designed in such a way that players are not constantly interrupted or nudged to make purchases. At present, it exists in a separate tab that does not intrude on players who have already paid full price for this game. I sincerely hope it stays this way, although I suspect the primary reason Diablo 4 requires a constant internet connection is to accommodate these transactions. Unless you plan to engage in PvP battles or co-op quests with others, I see little reason why the game doesn’t offer an offline mode. That said, I never encountered any disconnection issues or lag, indicating a robust infrastructure.

Diablo IV review: Conclusion

If you’re in the mood to eliminate bloodthirsty demons while indulging in loot collection, Diablo IV is your game. The sequel doesn’t innovate within the dungeon-crawling genre, but it creatively combines existing ideas to deliver an exhilarating combat system, solid progression, and magnificently dark themes that transform its vast open world into a hellish realm. The enemy scaling can be a frustrating drawback, but Blizzard balances this with a variety of classes that uniquely combine abilities, resulting in increasingly exhilarating encounters. Though the presence of microtransactions — even if they’re only cosmetic — is a concerning aspect and the storytelling could greatly benefit from improved pacing, overall, it’s a devilishly enjoyable experience!