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Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred Review | MMORPG.com

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  • ArleeArlee Member UncommonPosts: 164


    Don't know much about the game. Do mercenaries take the place of something you'd otherwise party up with others to do (as MMORPGs have been doing in recent years) or does the game not work like that?



    Not really. They are great running around the world and you can take them into cellars and dungeons to get a bit more oomph. I mostly felt the difference while doing helltides at low level on harder difficulties. However, they currently can't be used in the Dark Citadel which is intended to be done with a group. They did say that they'll add more mercenaries and build out what they can do more if there's a demand for it.
  • ScotScot Member LegendaryPosts: 24,273
    Arlee said:


    Not really. They are great running around the world and you can take them into cellars and dungeons to get a bit more oomph. I mostly felt the difference while doing helltides at low level on harder difficulties. However, they currently can't be used in the Dark Citadel which is intended to be done with a group. They did say that they'll add more mercenaries and build out what they can do more if there's a demand for it.
    There is always going to be an incessant demand to do everything solo so there will be demand, developers have to resist that demand or there will be no grouping left in the game.
  • cheyanecheyane Member LegendaryPosts: 9,385
    This is an ARPG soloing is expected and nothing is odd about that.
    Sovrath
    Garrus Signature
  • GorweGorwe Member Posts: 1,593
    cheyane said:
    This is an ARPG soloing is expected and nothing is odd about that.
    The entire design is solo centric as opposed to MMOs where you have things like tanks, support etc.

    I would allow group play, but wouldn't focus on it. It's just not a core element of aRPG formula. For a bloody good reason.
  • FrodoFraginsFrodoFragins Member EpicPosts: 6,050
    Scot said:
    So is this the first expansion? It has been out 15 months, so that's quite decent but I think seasons has turned of as many players as it has made others happy. Personally I take a stance against seasons as we have seen them be an excuse for content in other games, but if they carry on knocking out one proper expansion a year they could turn the game round or indeed have already done so?

    Yes, it is the first actual expansion. I believe with Diablo IV the intent is to put out more than the typical single expansion games of this series have gotten.

    Their plan is to release a paid expansion each year.  They got delayed on this one because they had to fix so many issues with the base game before that.  I'm pretty sure they are going to be much more stingy with free upgrades to the game moving forward.
  • Pher0ciousPher0cious Member RarePosts: 526
    Arlee said:


    I'll wait for this to be on sale $9.99 or something and just play the campaign. Seasons just sucks ass with a tube.



    As Chaserz said, this is not a season this is an expansion with new story. If you don't want to have any interaction with the seasons you just play on the Eternal Realm rather than the Seasonal one.
    WTF? I'm not paying full price to just play the campaign. What a rip off. 

    LMAO you 2 completely missed the point. WHOOOOOSH
    ('''\( ',.:.,' )/''')
  • KnightFalzKnightFalz Member EpicPosts: 4,522
    Scot said:
    So is this the first expansion? It has been out 15 months, so that's quite decent but I think seasons has turned of as many players as it has made others happy. Personally I take a stance against seasons as we have seen them be an excuse for content in other games, but if they carry on knocking out one proper expansion a year they could turn the game round or indeed have already done so?

    Yes, it is the first actual expansion. I believe with Diablo IV the intent is to put out more than the typical single expansion games of this series have gotten.

    Their plan is to release a paid expansion each year.  They got delayed on this one because they had to fix so many issues with the base game before that.  I'm pretty sure they are going to be much more stingy with free upgrades to the game moving forward.

    I don't expect a for profit game to provide free upgrades.
  • FrodoFraginsFrodoFragins Member EpicPosts: 6,050
    edited October 7
    Scot said:
    So is this the first expansion? It has been out 15 months, so that's quite decent but I think seasons has turned of as many players as it has made others happy. Personally I take a stance against seasons as we have seen them be an excuse for content in other games, but if they carry on knocking out one proper expansion a year they could turn the game round or indeed have already done so?

    Yes, it is the first actual expansion. I believe with Diablo IV the intent is to put out more than the typical single expansion games of this series have gotten.

    Their plan is to release a paid expansion each year.  They got delayed on this one because they had to fix so many issues with the base game before that.  I'm pretty sure they are going to be much more stingy with free upgrades to the game moving forward.

    I don't expect a for profit game to provide free upgrades.
    Maybe in a world where POE doesn't exist.  But it does.

    I just find D4 boring and would rather stick with the other ARPGs I own at this point.  Well those games plus POE2 in 2025.  
  • ScotScot Member LegendaryPosts: 24,273
    edited October 7
    Gorwe said:
    cheyane said:
    This is an ARPG soloing is expected and nothing is odd about that.
    The entire design is solo centric as opposed to MMOs where you have things like tanks, support etc.

    I would allow group play, but wouldn't focus on it. It's just not a core element of aRPG formula. For a bloody good reason.
    But to me grouping is also expected. I see you said "I would allow group play, but wouldn't focus on it", can you tell me the genre were grouping is focused on? Unless you mean co-op which I suppose is "forced grouping"? :)

    Seriously, what I am getting at is MMOs are not a genre which focuses on grouping, there is no genre which does so. But we are close here, I don't expect as much grouping in an ARPG as I would a MMO, but I expect some.
  • GorweGorwe Member Posts: 1,593
    Scot said:
    Gorwe said:
    cheyane said:
    This is an ARPG soloing is expected and nothing is odd about that.
    The entire design is solo centric as opposed to MMOs where you have things like tanks, support etc.

    I would allow group play, but wouldn't focus on it. It's just not a core element of aRPG formula. For a bloody good reason.
    But to me grouping is also expected. I see you said "I would allow group play, but wouldn't focus on it", can you tell me the genre were grouping is focused on? Unless you mean co-op which I suppose is "forced grouping"? :)

    Seriously, what I am getting at is MMOs are not a genre which focuses on grouping, there is no genre which does so. But we are close here, I don't expect as much grouping in an ARPG as I would a MMO, but I expect some.
    I also expect some, but exclusive dungeons etc are a bridge too far.

    Group focused games? Oh, idk, MMOs, co-ops, MOBAs etc. Any game where your individual performance don't matter as much as what your team as a whole is doing.
  • cheyanecheyane Member LegendaryPosts: 9,385
    Some ARPGs make grouping both cumbersome and detrimental where experience and loot is concerned and quest progress. So I would say it is not a genre one expects to group usually but I am not talking about the late game loops though where grouping is often the only way to progress if you don't want to tear all your hair out.
    Scot
    Garrus Signature
  • ScotScot Member LegendaryPosts: 24,273
    cheyane said:
    Some ARPGs make grouping both cumbersome and detrimental where experience and loot is concerned and quest progress. So I would say it is not a genre one expects to group usually but I am not talking about the late game loops though where grouping is often the only way to progress if you don't want to tear all your hair out.
    Phew! :)



  • UNH0LYEV1LUNH0LYEV1L Member UncommonPosts: 572
    This score is wild. Universal consensus is that the story is extremely boring and that the game doesn't really add anything new. The new class is basically a reskinned D3 monk even copy pasting many animations. Score range from people seem to have it between a 5-7/10.
  • AngrakhanAngrakhan Member EpicPosts: 1,750
    Scot said:
    Arlee said:


    Not really. They are great running around the world and you can take them into cellars and dungeons to get a bit more oomph. I mostly felt the difference while doing helltides at low level on harder difficulties. However, they currently can't be used in the Dark Citadel which is intended to be done with a group. They did say that they'll add more mercenaries and build out what they can do more if there's a demand for it.
    There is always going to be an incessant demand to do everything solo so there will be demand, developers have to resist that demand or there will be no grouping left in the game.
    Dude, Diablo 3 had mercenaries from day 1, and plenty of people grouped up. All you had to do was pick your difficulty and game mode and join a multiplayer game. Bam! grouped within seconds. All D4 did was add back the mercenaries they neglected to put in at launch. Relax. This isn't some crusade against grouping. Also it's an ARPG not an MMO which has always supported solo play style. It's why D3 and D4 have...brace yourself... solo ladders! Players actually compete at soloing. Crazy concept, I know.

    Are you perhaps projecting your MMO gamer values on a non-MMO game? That will for sure lead to frustration as the developers and players have different expectations and goals than you. There's no raids either just FYI. There are world bosses, though, and they're pretty fun.
  • KnightFalzKnightFalz Member EpicPosts: 4,522
    Scot said:
    So is this the first expansion? It has been out 15 months, so that's quite decent but I think seasons has turned of as many players as it has made others happy. Personally I take a stance against seasons as we have seen them be an excuse for content in other games, but if they carry on knocking out one proper expansion a year they could turn the game round or indeed have already done so?

    Yes, it is the first actual expansion. I believe with Diablo IV the intent is to put out more than the typical single expansion games of this series have gotten.

    Their plan is to release a paid expansion each year.  They got delayed on this one because they had to fix so many issues with the base game before that.  I'm pretty sure they are going to be much more stingy with free upgrades to the game moving forward.

    I don't expect a for profit game to provide free upgrades.
    Maybe in a world where POE doesn't exist.  But it does.

    I just find D4 boring and would rather stick with the other ARPGs I own at this point.  Well those games plus POE2 in 2025.  

    That PoE exists may change your expectations but it doesn't mine.
  • ValdemarJValdemarJ Member RarePosts: 1,378
    I'm enjoying the xpac a lot. It's good and the activities, quests, events, combat, and loot finally have a good pacing and balance to them. Still lots of grind (shrug).

    If you're looking for build guidance, I highly recommend this site. https://d4builds.gg/tierlist/ There are other good sites too, like WoWHead and Maxroll.

    That's the tier list page, which is a great place to start. I'm running the Quill Volley leveling build. There are a lot of good builds from B to S tier. B-tier builds seem to be solid but have some weaknesses or flaw when it comes to certain content, bosses, or situations where they may struggle compared to A and S tier builds.
    Terazon
    Bring back the Naked Chicken Chalupa!
  • Elidien_gaElidien_ga Member UncommonPosts: 385
    For those playing, how is performance? Hitching especially for me has always been bad going into and out of town and other transitional spots.
  • GorweGorwe Member Posts: 1,593
    edited October 9
    My review: It can go fuck itself. Such a hackjob ; I could do better half asleep!
  • KnightFalzKnightFalz Member EpicPosts: 4,522
    Gorwe said:
    My review: It can go fuck itself. Such a hackjob ; I could do better half asleep!

    When you actually create an ARPG when fully awake I'll happily give it a go to see if I feel it better or at least decent. It needn't be at the scale of DIV as I've played and enjoyed games of the genre far more modest in comparison.
    Sovrath
  • FrodoFraginsFrodoFragins Member EpicPosts: 6,050
    edited October 10
    The steam reviews are listed as 'mixed' with only 48% positive reviews(only 442 reviews).  Metacritic user scores are only 2.7/10 with only 40 reviews.

    You have to discount the metacritic score as I bet many didn't even buy the expansion.

    It was clear going in that people that already enjoyed D4 would enjoy the expansion, at least the endgame.  The campaign itself is a major source of criticism for being very short.  The second most common criticism seems to be the more grindy leveling experience as mobs became tankier.

    https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/d4/t/the-season-of-slog/193526

    Saving runes for a paid expansion when they were supposed to be in the base game does make the expansion even more lackluster. 

    I've watched some streams and haven't felt a single itch to buy it yet.  It really is less appealing than POE, Last Epoch, Grim Dawn and even Torchlight Infinite.

    If this expansion was free I'd play it but almost certainly quit once the battle pass was complete.
    Post edited by FrodoFragins on
  • AbimorAbimor Member RarePosts: 915
    The steam reviews are listed as 'mixed' with only 48% positive reviews(only 442 reviews).  Metacritic user scores are only 2.7/10 with only 40 reviews.

    You have to discount the metacritic score as I bet many didn't even buy the expansion.

    It was clear going in that people that already enjoyed D4 would enjoy the expansion, at least the endgame.  The campaign itself is a major source of criticism for being very short.  The second most common criticism seems to be the more grindy leveling experience as mobs became tankier.

    https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/d4/t/the-season-of-slog/193526

    Saving runes for a paid expansion when they were supposed to be in the base game does make the expansion even more lackluster. 

    I've watched some streams and haven't felt a single itch to buy it yet.  It really is less appealing than POE, Last Epoch, Grim Dawn and even Torchlight Infinite.

    If this expansion was free I'd play it but almost certainly quit once the battle pass was complete.
    so I hated the game on release didn't even make it passed like lvl20. right now I'm glad I gave it a second shot having fun. started the base campaign with new class it's fun. the biggest difference is the loor feels better. 
    Some one above didn't like the story so far into chapter 1 I think it's great. 
  • GorweGorwe Member Posts: 1,593
    Abimor said:
    The steam reviews are listed as 'mixed' with only 48% positive reviews(only 442 reviews).  Metacritic user scores are only 2.7/10 with only 40 reviews.

    You have to discount the metacritic score as I bet many didn't even buy the expansion.

    It was clear going in that people that already enjoyed D4 would enjoy the expansion, at least the endgame.  The campaign itself is a major source of criticism for being very short.  The second most common criticism seems to be the more grindy leveling experience as mobs became tankier.

    https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/d4/t/the-season-of-slog/193526

    Saving runes for a paid expansion when they were supposed to be in the base game does make the expansion even more lackluster. 

    I've watched some streams and haven't felt a single itch to buy it yet.  It really is less appealing than POE, Last Epoch, Grim Dawn and even Torchlight Infinite.

    If this expansion was free I'd play it but almost certainly quit once the battle pass was complete.
    so I hated the game on release didn't even make it passed like lvl20. right now I'm glad I gave it a second shot having fun. started the base campaign with new class it's fun. the biggest difference is the loor feels better. 
    Some one above didn't like the story so far into chapter 1 I think it's great. 
    You would most likely like it even better in Season 5. Expansion brought a lot of needless crap. And didn't really enhance the game in any significant way.
  • KnightFalzKnightFalz Member EpicPosts: 4,522
    The steam reviews are listed as 'mixed' with only 48% positive reviews(only 442 reviews).  Metacritic user scores are only 2.7/10 with only 40 reviews.

    You have to discount the metacritic score as I bet many didn't even buy the expansion.

    It was clear going in that people that already enjoyed D4 would enjoy the expansion, at least the endgame.  The campaign itself is a major source of criticism for being very short.  The second most common criticism seems to be the more grindy leveling experience as mobs became tankier.

    https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/d4/t/the-season-of-slog/193526

    Saving runes for a paid expansion when they were supposed to be in the base game does make the expansion even more lackluster. 

    I've watched some streams and haven't felt a single itch to buy it yet.  It really is less appealing than POE, Last Epoch, Grim Dawn and even Torchlight Infinite.

    If this expansion was free I'd play it but almost certainly quit once the battle pass was complete.

    User reviews scores have become a joke due to how easily they can be manipulated through collective effort and people never stop bitching on Blizzard forums. Neither of these points are strong DIV criticisms.

    If the runes added were supposed to be part of the base game they would have been patched in to it. Anything not patched in to the base game isn't intended for it.

    If it was free the expansion wouldn't exist to be played. Diablo IV is sold on a b2p basis, with optional cash shop purchases. If you want a f2p ARPG where you can expect content to be provided at no extra cost you'll have to play something else.
  • FrodoFraginsFrodoFragins Member EpicPosts: 6,050
    The steam reviews are listed as 'mixed' with only 48% positive reviews(only 442 reviews).  Metacritic user scores are only 2.7/10 with only 40 reviews.

    You have to discount the metacritic score as I bet many didn't even buy the expansion.

    It was clear going in that people that already enjoyed D4 would enjoy the expansion, at least the endgame.  The campaign itself is a major source of criticism for being very short.  The second most common criticism seems to be the more grindy leveling experience as mobs became tankier.

    https://us.forums.blizzard.com/en/d4/t/the-season-of-slog/193526

    Saving runes for a paid expansion when they were supposed to be in the base game does make the expansion even more lackluster. 

    I've watched some streams and haven't felt a single itch to buy it yet.  It really is less appealing than POE, Last Epoch, Grim Dawn and even Torchlight Infinite.

    If this expansion was free I'd play it but almost certainly quit once the battle pass was complete.


    If the runes added were supposed to be part of the base game they would have been patched in to it. Anything not patched in to the base game isn't intended for it.
    I assume you didn't follow the dev blogs before release?  Runes were advertised and then cut to hit their release date.

    You like the game and that's great.  But try to be an informed before debating it.
  • ValdemarJValdemarJ Member RarePosts: 1,378

    gimme
    Bring back the Naked Chicken Chalupa!
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