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Diablo II: Resurrected is a remastered version of one of the oldest games of all time, Diablo II. The highly loved title is not just a classic but a game that went on to define the Action RPG genre. Other games like Path of Exile, Diablo III, Lost Ark and several others wouldn't have existed if not for Diablo II.
Diablo II: Resurrected revamps the original title while holding on to the familiar essence, yet bringing in a lot more for fans to enjoy. The game brings back the old classic to a wide variety of platforms with impressive modern day advancements.
However, it does not end here as Diablo II: Resurrected offers so much more that it cannot be covered in just a few words. It is also worth mentioning that the game feels a bit too dated despite all the glamor and technological advancements it provides.
Therefore, here is an in-depth review into the brilliant scope of Diablo II: Resurrected.
Diablo II: Resurrected is a remaster like none other
The re-developed title offers more than just a few basic graphical upgrades. It brings in both graphical as well as audio changes to monsters, spells, items and the in-game world. The game also has upgraded versions of every cinematic cutscene.
Cinematics in Diablo II: Resurrected play a crucial role in tying up the story together. Therefore, Blizzard Entertainment rebuilt every cinematic from scratch to improve the animations, lighting as well as the character models.
However, despite graphical changes, one of the major problems that several remasters face is that they often try to tamper with the various aspects that made the original game special. Diablo II: Resurrected ensures that such issues never occur as the core gameplay features remain intact.
Players can check for themselves by switching to the legacy edition. Once players switch back to the classic option, they realize how different and yet how similar the two versions of the game feel. Though it would be a long shot, if the Resurrected title came out as something new in 2021, it would have won the Game of the Year by a mile.
Diablo II: Resurrected retains its original formula that made the game special
Sticking to the original's gameplay style, Diablo II: Resurrected involves clicking the mouse like a fanatic while trying to beat down hordes of monsters all across the map.
The game features seven classes, providing major flexibility to players so they can build these classes in whatever fashion they want without much restrictions.
Each of these characters has a detailed skill tree system that is ultimately based on stamina, mana and health pool. The game is simplistic in design, and it is a relief that Blizzard Entertainment did not alter it.
Modern games involve thousands of point systems and currencies to upgrade one small skill aspect. Diablo II: Resurrected keeps it simple where normal level up points are enough to build the skill aspect of the character.
This idea might feel outdated, though players seem to have no complaints. In fact, it welcomes new players to try out the game even more as the gap from veterans is reduced considerably. While it is true that veterans have more knowledge and can do much more, newbies do not have to break their heads while trying to enjoy this game.
Diablo II: Resurrected also adds new quality-of-life features to keep up with modern trends
The game has introduced auto gold pickup, which is a life-saver for everyone. Just walking past the gold will add it to the inventory and this saves a lot of time for the player. The game has added toggleable subtitles which is something that certain players often enjoy, even though it will not be for everyone.
The ability to auto sort inventory using controllers and cursor sensitive settings for controllers are two very valuable features for console players. The game has also introduced hold-to-attack where it reduces the total number of mouse clicks and button smashes, which definitely goes a long way to improve the longevity of the gaming equipment.
Finally, the game has also added adjustable map opacity which helps players adjust their gameplay. Extensive key bindings allow players to land spells and sort their equipment on their own terms. This is undoubtedly one of the best things that Diablo II: Resurrected brings to the table.
Diablo II: Resurrected might have been faithful, but certain aspects feel way too outdated for the modern day
Diablo II: Resurrected is a true remaster where it retains everything and provides improvements on that. However, some of the age-old mechanics that the game still retains should have been improved a bit more.
The stamina system is something that does not exist in any modern Action RPG game. It is frustrating, to say the least, and can often be the cause of death. While modern day games provide unhindered movement speed to players, Diablo II: Resurrected tends to restrict them.
Secondly, the game’s death mechanics are still outdated. Once a player dies, all the equipment they might have gathered is lost and players need to run all the way back to collect those. This is also annoying as running back through all the tough enemies without any armor and weapons is frustratingly difficult.
The skill tree could have been improved significantly where players would have a grand view of everything, rather than switching and scrambling. Finally, the inventory at times falls a bit too small, which clearly becomes a problem in large areas where players need to micromanage inventory in the middle of a quest.
Diablo II: Resurrected does well by bringing the community together
Diablo II: Resurrected adds cross progression and cross-generation to the game. This means players can buy the game on PC and play it on Playstation without losing any progress.
This definitely makes the task of bringing the community closer a lot easier. This is because if a PC player's friend is on a console, then the player can load the game on their console too and play with their friend..
A game like Diablo II: Resurrected will always feel more precious with friends to play and therefore, this particular move has been well received by the community as a whole.
Performance
Diablo II: Resurrected had some serious issues when the beta version of the game was first released. The game crashed for several people and it was plagued with numerous graphical glitches.
Blizzard Entertainment, however, has managed to make improvements and therefore, provided a clean final release. The game was tested on a Lenovo Legion PC with 8 gigabytes of RAM and an NVIDIA Geforce 1660 Super graphics card.
The game managed to provide seamless 60 fps performance at 1920 x 1080p with medium to high settings.
On higher-end PCs, the game runs even better, even though there have been minute graphical glitches. This can be neglected anyway as they do not affect the gameplay performance or experience of the game in any way.
Closing thoughts on Diablo II: Resurrected
Diablo II: Resurrected is overall a great remaster and does very well to make old fans of the game excited. It has also attracted a lot of new players as the game managed to remain at the top of Twitch viewership for almost two days in a row.
This is quite a feat considering the other games that do take up that spot. Several players played the game while both veterans and new players witnessed one of the greatest games of all time in all its glory.
However, players who have played only Diablo III or any of the modern day classics will find it a bit hard to enter this game. While it is great, the game lacks certain features which make modern day games more approachable.
It is simple, and yet certain things like the death mechanics definitely hold the game back quite a lot. A few changes to the drawbacks, that have been mentioned earlier, would definitely prove to be quite vital towards increasing the playerbase.
In truth, Diablo III was not a success as players felt that it lacked the vibe of its predecessor. However, players did welcome the new and advanced gameplay features quite a lot, which makes life easier. Diablo II: Resurrected sort of goes back 20 years back once more and this is something that might feel like an overkill from the side of the developers.
Either way, there is no denying that Diablo II: Resurrected is not for everyone. It is ultimately up to the player whether they want to play the game or not. Hopefully, this review will provide them with some insight before trying it out.
Diablo II: Resurrected
Reviewed On: Lenovo Legion PC
Platforms: Playstation 5, Playstation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC
Developer: Blizzard Entertainment, Vicarious Visions
Publisher: Blizzard Entertainment
Release: September 23, 2021
