Hell is green now!
Diablo IV arrived to fanfare and excitement last year. Descending into Hell with a hero and hacking and slashing hoards of enemies alongside friends has been a regular pastime for years since the franchise launched in 1997. Since then the game has evolved and now, it’s time to head back to Sanctuary with Diablo IV’s first DLC featuring a new class, Spiritborn. Is the game worth revisiting though? Has Blizzard listened to the fans and involved The Wanderer more, varied gameplay enough with this new class, and peaked interest in this new story DLC? We’re going to jump in, hell or high wanderer!
Nerelle Narrative
The story takes place immediately after the original campaign. If you haven’t played Diablo IV yet, spoilers follow! Spoilers are coming! Spoilers are here! After Lilith is defeated, Nerelle is last seen carrying a fragment of the Crystal used to imprison Mephisto. It’s a heavy burden, but she’s chosen to carry it and continue seeking out a way to imprison evil. Urivar, a radical leader of the faith has said evil will not be tolerated in sanctuary anymore. It’s up to the Wanderer to track down old friends and run to Nerelle’s aid as the burden she carried very clearly can’t be done alone based on the opening cinematic.
The narrative is given to players in an incredibly well cut summary, so it felt easy to jump back in. After Diablo IV players were left with a lot of questions unanswered. It was very clearly a “what happens next” sort of ending. Without going into spoilers about the actual DLC, it’s easy to say that one of Vessel of Hatred’s strengths is storytelling. Many players salivate for sanctuary’s story in the Diablo series, but the real meat is in the grinding gameplay.
Gorilla Gameplay
Vessel of Hatred’s new class, Sporitborn, is definitely worth the price of entry. Everything feels quick, smooth, and rewarding. Leveling up in the different skill trees provides so many diverse ways to play as this class and is the deepest customization in Diablo IV yet! There’s different builds based on animals like Gorilla, Centipede, Jaguar, and Eagle. This effectively feels like 4 different classes because each loadout feels unique. While nothing has significantly changed (it’s still button mashing combat) I actually felt myself choosing attacks a bit more intentionally than in the past. Being able to customize this class also makes it accessible to all Diablo players. I’ve always loved Necromancer, and a few of the traits in Sporitborn feel inspired here. It was great to get into this new class and feel right at home at times.
Where Vessel of Hatred faulted is where most DLC for a main game does… The new areas are nothing to write home to Mephisto about. Nahantu still feels like It’s the same old solemn sanctuary. One of the hardest parts of Diablo IV’s initial playthrough was buying into the world. Occasionally areas feel unique, but the pallet of colours still feels a bland to look at. The pops of colours, green especially, help diversify areas. It has to be said though that this is Diablo, of course! But I can’t help but want more still from the world and players paying a premium price for entry may expect more.
Protecting Presentation
The core gameplay that made Diablo IV is still here though. At the end of the day, it’s a solid game and performs smoothly even on Xbox Series S. I was impressed, since the last time I played was on a Series X console. It’s clear developers have continued to make improvements with each seasonal update and now for the large Vessels of Hatred expansion.
Cosmetics are still a treat to find and the amount of detail Blizzard goes into for all pieces, be it boots or small jewelry pieces is commendable. It’s also possible to keep the look of an armour piece but give it the upgrading traits of another in case you get tied to a certain look. Quality of life features like this are one of many in Diablo IV. The world feels lived in and the NPCs are all interesting. Sometimes, during my time with Diablo IV, I really would be the Wanderer and just take it all in. It’s easy to find out more about the story of you take time to smell the roses.
Graphically, Diablo IV is gorgeous however you play. It just goes back to a colour palette… there was much sand for instance in the first few hours and I found myself losing steam at the similar locations. It’s easy to pick out small details like this though because the rest of the game is a hell of a good time.
Diablo Devoured
After trying out multiple loadouts, fighting bosses, and getting deeper into the lore of Vessel of Hatred it’s clear that this DLC is something special for Diablo IV fans. While occasionally bland to look at, it’s always fun to play. The new class, Spiritborn is nimble, highly customizable, and worth the price of entry alone. Restarting with this class for seasonal content is something I’m looking forward to after beating the story and I can’t wait to see what Blizzard has up its sanctuary sleeves for the next inevitable update. The story continues…
Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred Review
Summary
Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred is a fantastic expansion that does more of what made Diablo IV engaging in the first place. The new Spiritborn Class is worth the price of entry on its own and gives players a highly customizable and enjoyable playing experience. However, it also has to be said that this is just more Diablo gameplay. At the end of the day, you are button mashing to save Sanctuary again and at times, it can still feel repetitive.
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