Before I start this impression/review piece let me be clear in saying that I am fully aware of what's happening at Activision Blizzard. I am against their antics, and this game was bought purely for my love of the original.
21 years. That's how long it has been since the release of Diablo 2. Since then, it has gained a significant fanbase, with the franchise seemly taking a rollercoaster of events. We went from crap launch of Diablo 3, "Do you guys not have phones?" announcement of Diablo Immortals, to concerning updates on Diablo 4, and now here we are. This is a great looter rpg to play until the release of Diablo 4, or it can be the game to play instead of Diablo 4
Graphics
They have done an excellent job of recreating familiar areas with modern graphics. It's just not in-game, but they have also re-animated cinematics between each Acts as well. I understand these cinematics were amazing back in 2000s, but if I see them today I can't tell what is going on because some scenes are too dark and they are generally in low resolution. With the re-animated cinematics, I enjoy watching these and makes me more invested in the story. I feel this was what was missing in StarCraft Remastered. I loved the redesign of the main game, but it was weird constantly going back and forth between that and the old cinematics.
I am aware the updated design of some classes are ugly, but with how the camera always locked in isometric angle, I found myself not caring at all what their faces looks like. What I did noticed were the new animations for attacking, walking, casting spell, enemies, and etc no longer have the choppiness of the old; All in-game animations look smoother and appealing to the modern audience. There is always a button you can press to go back to the old graphics, and you can tell just how far we've come.
Gameplay
This is a huge point that will divide the line of whether you will enjoy the game or not. If you loved the original D2, or generally are fan of roguelike looter rpg, with randomized drops, then this will be a perfect game for you. The overworlds are purposely left empty, so you don;t have to explore every inch of them. The dungeons you find are worth your time, as there are chances to reward you with cool gears.
The mobs you encounter on your journey can seem recycled with different colors, but new ones are added as you progress. I am still impressed by all of their designs. The boss fights are epic, especially on higher difficulty with friends. The randomized loots are great rewards for defeating them. The remaster has both the base and the LOD expansion, and withit, all 7 classes. They are all still fun to play and experiment with. There are many builds that you can find online, but they all feel appropriate to your class. I am currently working on a flaming werebear druid build, which is amazing as it sounds.
There is no personal loot in the remaster, which might be a turn off for some of you. I mostly like to solo these games so it doesn't bother me. What does bother me is the limited ways to switch between online and offline. With no LAN option, you are forced to have your character go back and forth in each mode.
Also, the hotkey assignment can be really frustrating. One player on Reddit has reported how hotkeys seem to reset for every new build they start.
Story
Nothing seems to be changed, which is a good thing. Yes, the story of D2 may look standard, and there were many other dark fantasy stories told since its release, but Diablo has captured many with the way it tells the story. The world-building and character designs of the game are still impressive today, and you'll know why the game is being praised so much. As I said above, the cinematics has been redone, and it gave me a new sense of how terrifying Diablo actually is.
Bugs and technical stuff
As with any game's launch, there are plenty of bugs and technical issues being reported, according to this reddit megathread. I personally haven't encountered any connection issues nor crashes, but I did encounter some progression bugs here and there; I would save and exit, come back, and I am back at a few stages before. It wasn't too much of a setback nor did it take a long time to get back to where I was, but still strange regardless.
Overall
For $40, there is a lot of stuff offered here. If you are a fan of darl fantasy and love RNG looter mechanic, then you are going love this game. If you aren't, then maybe Kena might be a better choice for you. There are also some issues in gameplay and bugs, and that might stop you from fully enjoying this remaster
8/10
21 years. That's how long it has been since the release of Diablo 2. Since then, it has gained a significant fanbase, with the franchise seemly taking a rollercoaster of events. We went from crap launch of Diablo 3, "Do you guys not have phones?" announcement of Diablo Immortals, to concerning updates on Diablo 4, and now here we are. This is a great looter rpg to play until the release of Diablo 4, or it can be the game to play instead of Diablo 4
Graphics
They have done an excellent job of recreating familiar areas with modern graphics. It's just not in-game, but they have also re-animated cinematics between each Acts as well. I understand these cinematics were amazing back in 2000s, but if I see them today I can't tell what is going on because some scenes are too dark and they are generally in low resolution. With the re-animated cinematics, I enjoy watching these and makes me more invested in the story. I feel this was what was missing in StarCraft Remastered. I loved the redesign of the main game, but it was weird constantly going back and forth between that and the old cinematics.
I am aware the updated design of some classes are ugly, but with how the camera always locked in isometric angle, I found myself not caring at all what their faces looks like. What I did noticed were the new animations for attacking, walking, casting spell, enemies, and etc no longer have the choppiness of the old; All in-game animations look smoother and appealing to the modern audience. There is always a button you can press to go back to the old graphics, and you can tell just how far we've come.
Gameplay
This is a huge point that will divide the line of whether you will enjoy the game or not. If you loved the original D2, or generally are fan of roguelike looter rpg, with randomized drops, then this will be a perfect game for you. The overworlds are purposely left empty, so you don;t have to explore every inch of them. The dungeons you find are worth your time, as there are chances to reward you with cool gears.
The mobs you encounter on your journey can seem recycled with different colors, but new ones are added as you progress. I am still impressed by all of their designs. The boss fights are epic, especially on higher difficulty with friends. The randomized loots are great rewards for defeating them. The remaster has both the base and the LOD expansion, and withit, all 7 classes. They are all still fun to play and experiment with. There are many builds that you can find online, but they all feel appropriate to your class. I am currently working on a flaming werebear druid build, which is amazing as it sounds.
There is no personal loot in the remaster, which might be a turn off for some of you. I mostly like to solo these games so it doesn't bother me. What does bother me is the limited ways to switch between online and offline. With no LAN option, you are forced to have your character go back and forth in each mode.
Also, the hotkey assignment can be really frustrating. One player on Reddit has reported how hotkeys seem to reset for every new build they start.
Story
Nothing seems to be changed, which is a good thing. Yes, the story of D2 may look standard, and there were many other dark fantasy stories told since its release, but Diablo has captured many with the way it tells the story. The world-building and character designs of the game are still impressive today, and you'll know why the game is being praised so much. As I said above, the cinematics has been redone, and it gave me a new sense of how terrifying Diablo actually is.
Bugs and technical stuff
As with any game's launch, there are plenty of bugs and technical issues being reported, according to this reddit megathread. I personally haven't encountered any connection issues nor crashes, but I did encounter some progression bugs here and there; I would save and exit, come back, and I am back at a few stages before. It wasn't too much of a setback nor did it take a long time to get back to where I was, but still strange regardless.
Overall
For $40, there is a lot of stuff offered here. If you are a fan of darl fantasy and love RNG looter mechanic, then you are going love this game. If you aren't, then maybe Kena might be a better choice for you. There are also some issues in gameplay and bugs, and that might stop you from fully enjoying this remaster
8/10
Last edited:
