Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred Spiel

by Rian

Vessel of Hatred, the previous expansion, left quite a lot to be desired. It only introduced a new class to the game; it added a new region; it unfolded some of Mephisto’s plans. But ultimately, aside from some powerful cinematic in and out of the game, it was a filler between the stories. Lord of Hatred is the conflict Diablo IV needed, all the way to the resolution.

I would argue the core gameplay did not radically change outside of what Diablo already was. The franchise had introduced similar systems before, and my playthrough as Warlock was more or less reminiscent of what I expected from a Blizzard game. To put it bluntly, my build ended up becoming an Abathur in Warlock suit — one of my favorite characters in Starcraft, so can’t complain. In other words, if the base game didn’t the prospective gamer, I don’t think the new system will be enough. I believe it is more appealing to those who know their preferences and how they can bake it into the existing classes.

The world building and the character arcs developed in the Lord of Hatred is simply phenomenal. We are still being railroaded on the plot lines, but the arguments the game present in favor of the choices to be made are quite strong. I wouldn’t go into details for the sake of spoilers, but if you enjoyed watching literal landscapes changing and cosmic powers ploying against each other, Blizzard nailed it. I believe it is a different take on cosmic horror, but as the game has already established, nobody can escape it. Or shouldn’t be able to escape it.

That being said, I do wonder what will the developer do past this expansion. Most of the active conflicts introduced in Diablo IV have been resolved, one way or the other. If I were to guess, it will need yet another dramatic entry of next antagonist like Lilith from the base game. The expansion does not set itself up for it. In fact, it ended so gracefully, it’s as if the protagonist has escaped the “eldritch truth” in Lovecraftian sense. There is also the question of Nephalem from Diablo III, who hasn’t made an appearance again, yet.

Last but not least, Diablo IV still has server issues. Thankfully, I wasn’t playing a build that needed me to micro-manage each skills. It was mostly about AoE with summoned minions. However, it was quite ridiculous at one point, when I wanted to click to grab the loots on the ground, only for it to be registered to a portal that appeared on the same spot after a quick lag. I did try playing Paladin during the Early Access, and it has gotten better since; but one would think overall server issues to be ironed out by now.

Conclusions: Steep Price Tag for Good Closure

For some context, if you were buying Diablo IV since release in standard edition, the sum would come out at around $150. If you were to delve into the Diablo IV with all the expansions included, that’s Age of Hatred Collection at $69.99. Lord of Hatred alone is priced at $39.99. As much as I enjoyed the arcs and the universe in more mature manner in Diablo IV, I do not know if this is an IP I can recommend without knowing the full price after all the expansions have been released. Remember, Diablo from Diablo hasn’t made an appearance yet. As much as I enjoyed the good story and the good world building, I am not entirely sure if this is a must-buy for all gamers.