Diablo 4has been a breath of fresh air for fans ofDiablo 2who were disappointed with the direction Blizzard took withDiablo 3. WhileDiablo 3brought some new ideas to the franchise that ended up improving the game in certain ways such as more user-friendly controls and improved multiplayer functionality, many fans were glad to see some of their favorite features fromDiablo 2return inDiablo 4.
Aside from these fan-favorite features fromDiablo 2,Diablo 4also returns to the darker tone and art style many players missed inDiablo 3. The story also features characters introduced inDiablo 2like Andariel and Lilith who weren’t featured inDiablo 3. While these elements are a return to form for theDiabloseries, it’s the gameplay features fromDiablo 2that really helpDiablo 4improve upon the criticisms ofDiablo 3.
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Skill Trees
Diablo 2’s skill tree system was one of the ways the game established a solid foundation for character and build customization for the series. However,Diablo 3dropped this system in favor of skill categories which included six different slots for skills with three to five options per slot.Diablo 4takes a similar approach to skillsasDiablo 2, returning to a skill tree format for unlocking and organizing abilities that allows players to have a much more customized character build thanDiablo 3’s system.
Sorcerer Class
While originally appearing in the firstDiablo, the Sorcerer shifted inDiablo 2to become the female-only Sorceress class, andDiablo 4’s Sorcerer classfunctions similarly to itsDiablo 2counterpart. The Wizard was the primary magic-based class inDiablo 3, but it never really matched the same play style asDiablo’s Sorcerer orDiablo 2’s Sorceress as it focused heavily on the Arcane damage type. It’s clear Blizzard saw the value in the classic Sorceress class and wanted a return to form with its incarnation inDiablo 4.
Unique Items
Unique quality items were introduced inDiablo 2which included the infamous Shako that returns inDiablo 4as the Harlequin Crest.Diablo 3did away with uniques and instead introduced legendary items as their replacement, which took a little of the excitement out of the true exclusivity ofDiablo 2’s uniques.Diablo 4finds a happy medium including both legendary items fromDiablo 3and uniques fromDiablo 2, including a variety of extremely rare and highly sought-after items.
Skull Gems
While not a major change in the gameplay department, Skull Gems return fromDiablo 2assocketable gems inDiablo 4.Diablo 3included other types of gems such as Amethysts, Emeralds, Rubies, Sapphires, Topazes, and Diamonds, but Skull Gems were missing from the game altogether. It may not seem like a huge deal for them to return inDiablo 4, but it helps demonstrate that Blizzard took a lot of inspiration fromDiablo 2when designing this latest entry.
Additional Skill Ranks as Item Affixes
Item affixes have been another staple mechanic of theDiabloseries that were reworked betweenDiablo 2andDiablo 3. WhileDiablo 2included the potential for items to contain affixes that add ranks to a class' skills,Diablo 3removed this feature, opting instead for affixes that primarily affect specific stats or damage types.Diablo 4’s affixesscore another point for build customization by bringing back the potential for items to have affixes that boost skill ranks, allowing players to go all-in on one or buff a variety of their preferred skills.
Diablo 4is available for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
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