Diablo 4 Makes the Most Out of Low Expectations

Facebook X Reddit Pinterest

Yet, for all the ways that those controversies and disappointments have negatively impacted Diablo 4, my many, many (too many) hours with the game have made one thing strangely clear. Diablo 4 is actually making the most of its lowered expectations in some surprising ways.

I can easily argue that Diablo 4 is a truly great game in many of the ways that matter most. Its core gameplay is unbelievably satisfying, its soundtrack is one of the best I’ve heard in years, and its visual design is surprisingly good for an isometric ARPG. You can just play through its campaign and get a fantastic 30-hour-ish role-playing game out of the experience.

However, you probably won’t stop there, and that’s what matters most. Diablo 4 is a great game, but Diablo 4 is a truly exceptional live-service game. It offers about a hundred hours of content for most people pushing toward Level 100, and that’s a conservative estimate. Of course, that’s to say nothing of the eventual temptation to level multiple characters, participate in PvP battles, or dive into the game’s Hardcore mode. That estimate also doesn’t account for the various updates and expansions that have yet to be released.

And for as much as people have fretted over Diablo 4’s in-game purchase options, they are more egregious in theory than they are in practice. Yes, it’s absurd that a premium character outfit can cost as much as $20 in a game that costs (at the very least) $70. However, you’re barely going to be able to see that outfit as you’re playing the game, so it’s likely not going to be a big draw to the majority of people. Besides, the game already offers an extensive transmog system that offers numerous customizable outfits that often look better than their premium counterparts. While the game’s Battle Pass hasn’t been implemented at the time of this writing, I have to say that it’s so refreshing to play a live service game where the microtransactions are not only easily ignored but remarkably unintrusive.

That’s the thing about praising Diablo 4’s live service elements, though. So much of the praise I have for that element of the game is based on comparing it to the live service games that have given that concept a bad name. Unlike GTA Online, you can play Diablo 4 by yourself without spending money and never feel like you’re missing out on a significant part of the experience. Unlike Destiny 2, Diablo 4’s loot, build, and endgame systems feel designed to appease those looking for genuine depth rather than just offer an excuse to remain trapped in a simple, yet satisfying, gameplay loop. Unlike Halo Infinite, you don’t feel like everything you do in Diablo 4 simply exists to service a premium progression mechanic that you’re told doesn’t technically affect the gameplay.

It’s a curious and complicated dynamic. Diablo 4’s live service elements only reach great heights because we’re measuring them with the low bar set by Blizzard, Diablo, and pretty much every other live service game in recent years. Even then, Diablo 4’s live service elements will instantly remind many of the practices that have corrupted the gaming industry over the years. For that matter, it’s hard to fault those who simply either refuse to trust an Activision Blizzard game to not be greedy or otherwise are not willing to forgive Blizzard for everything that has happened. In their minds, supporting Diablo 4 means supporting all of that.