by Anthony O'Connor
Worth: $17.00
FilmInk rates movies out of $20 — the score indicates the amount we believe a ticket to the movie to be worth
Intro:
... the perfect action RPG for the terminally busy, working parents or those who just prefer their dark fantasy experiences to be on the more casual side.
Since its release in 2023, Diablo IV has been an ever-changing experience. This hasn’t always been a good thing, mind you. Spend more than seven seconds on social media (particularly reddit) and you’ll no doubt see much digital gnashing of teeth regarding various nerfs or buffs that the game has received, and near-endless kvetching about the endgame. Such is the nature of live service titles these days. In 2024, the first major story expansion, Vessel of Hatred launched, and while it featured solid gameplay additions and a new class, the story itself was a bit of a whiff. After the surprisingly robust yarn-spinning in the main game, that was a distinct disappointment. Now, with the latest large expansion, Lord of Hatred, Blizzard has the unenviable job of wrapping up this first act of the overarching narrative, introducing two entirely new classes and making the endgame a fun experience for newbies and veterans alike. So, how did they do?
Honestly, pretty damn well, with a couple of caveats.
Lord of Hatred reintroduces players to the evil, malevolent Mephisto, who is duping the citizens of Sanctuary into believing that he’s a top bloke when he is, in fact, a narky, dog-like demon intent on corrupting the souls of humankind. Lorath and the Wanderer (aka the player generated character) follow that little scamp to the sun-drenched Isles of Skovos where they need to use cunning, guile and a whole lot of graphic splattery violence to end this devious foe’s wretched machinations. They may even need to team up with a certain lesser evil that they previously vanquished…
The story campaign for Lord of Hatred is the best we’ve seen since the launch game. This is a dark and murky tale with real stakes, impactful character deaths and engaging twists and turns along the way. It’s no Game of Thrones, mind you, but for an action RPG all about converting monsters into their constituent parts as quickly as possible, it’s actually pretty nuanced. Plus, at around 8-10 hours, it’s just long enough to make you feel like you’re getting your money’s worth. Bravo, team.
Along for the ride are two new classes, Paladin, the holy warrior who uses divine light and/or a shitload of shiny swirling hammers to best their foes, and Warlock, an absolute dark magic powerhouse who can launch demons, control fire or turn themselves into something strong, evil and nasty. Both classes are superb with plenty of build variety, especially now that the skill trees have been heavily upgraded, and represent excellent additions to the already impressive roster.
This brings us to the endgame, which is more of a mixed bag. Although there is a new activity, Echoing Hatred, your main post level 70 pursuit will be War Plans – where you string together a bunch of other modes like Helltides, the Pit and Nightmare Dungeons and do them in a row to unlock further upgrades and loot. It starts off a bit slow, but as more and more activities unlock, it can be enjoyable, however, due to the fact that you’re skewing it to your specific needs, teaming up with mates feels a little unrewarding. Unless you think the real reward is the friends you made along the way … There’s certainly fun to be had deleting beasties and gaining more and more power, but it does feel like Diablo IV’s raid equivalent is still yet to manifest.
Still and all, Lord of Hatred is the best Diablo IV has been since its slightly rocky launch. The new campaign is meaty and engaging. The new classes are absolutely superb, offering two unique power fantasies that provide very different gameplay experiences. The new region is expansive and beautiful, with cool-looking new monsters and the skill tree upgrades are welcome, even if more work should be done in that area in future. The endgame, while perhaps not the total ground up reinvention one might have wished for, is solid and will hopefully be built upon.
Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred is the perfect action RPG for the terminally busy, working parents or those who just prefer their dark fantasy experiences to be on the more casual side. It’ll suck you in, gear you up and spit you out a couple of weeks later, feeling drained but satisfied. Perfect for those who just want to chill out, mince creatures and find that shiny new pair of daks with the perfect stats.
