Diablo IV Review

mmorpg.com:

It’s been a few weeks since Diablo IV saw its full launch, and real-life interferences notwithstanding, I’ve had the chance to dig into what it offers. I’ve also had an opportunity to get a feel for the shop and what server stability has been and seems to be moving forward. All of this, of course, might change a bit once we get into the seasonal content. That, however, is a problem for another day. Today is about Diablo IV’s launch state. Additionally, I’m not going to retread the ground I previously covered in the Review in Progress; if you haven’t read that, start there and then come back.

I decided to stick with the Sorcerer when it came time to roll on the live servers, and I’m glad I did because I probably wouldn’t have noticed the many balance changes between the early review access build and the live build. In addition, they also made many hotfixes and updates after Diablo IV launched, which isn’t surprising for a multiplayer online game. The nerf that had the most significant effect on me was the synergy between “heal x amount after not taking damage” gear and barriers. In the early review access build, if I had a barrier up, I would heal even if I was hit because, technically, I didn’t take damage. On the live build, getting hit even with a barrier up will prevent the regen from happening. I’m not surprised this was nerfed, but it did considerably change how recklessly I could play.

Aside from the various gameplay and balance updates, playing in the live environment made the solo storytelling aspects stand out a lot more. While playing through the campaign, players are in a solo version of whatever area until they progress the story to a certain point. For the most part, I enjoyed how this preserved the solitary