Diablo 4 is finally the phenomenal action RPG I wanted it to be

GamesRPGDiablo 4Diablo 4 is finally the phenomenal action RPG I wanted it to beWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Tyler C. / Blizzard)

Diablo 4 boss Andariel on a green background

You’re not supposed to defeat a boss 20 levels higher than you in most RPGs, let alone Diablo 4. I just did, alongside an army of skeletons, in its most pivotal season yet. It wasn’t particularly hard to pull off, but it would’ve taken a game-breaking exploit to do it a year ago. Diablo 4 season 4—and its massive list of permanent changes to the game—has finally made it into the action RPG I’d always hoped it would be.

There are10,000 lines of patch notesto read if you want, but the gist of the update is that every class is exponentially more flexible than they were before. Necromancers have long suffered a life with skeletal minions who fall apart as soon as you enter a room. Now, they’re effectively wearing the same armor as you are, which has made them so powerful that I’ve pulled a speedrunner move and sequence-broke the normal route through the game.

That era of Diablo 4 is finally over. It’s no longer precious about a healthy balance between mechanical skill and powerful gear. You have control over that now as you pick and choose between loot with stats that clearly synergize with your skills. Within a few hours of starting season 4, I was torn between adding a stat onto my necklace that made my minions stronger or one that made me run faster. It only makes a small difference in the early levels, but it’s a choice that forces you to think about what kind of character you want to be and how you’ll have to play around what you’re giving up.

(Image credit: Tyler C. / Blizzard)

Diablo 4 necromancer surrounded by skeletal minions

It’s the season of the necromancers and their undead armies, so I juiced up my boys in bone. It stung a little bit to not have that boost in movement speed, but my stronger minions trivialized the boss I wasn’t supposed to kill at such a low level. There were a few close-calls where a little extra speed would’ve let me walk out of a telegraphed attack, but while I focused on that my skeletons demolished the boss in under a minute.

Diablo is finally back

(Image credit: Tyler C. / Blizzard)

Diablo 4 helltide screenshot of necromancer fighting near pool of blood

In season 4, every build works while you’re leveling up.

Season 4 lacks a unique mechanic that empowers your character, like the robot spider from season 3 or the vampiric powers in season 2. Instead, your job is to help a group of mercenaries from Diablo 2 defend themselves from the Blood Maiden, a new summonable boss in Helltide. Your reward is a bunch of caches filled with gear that you’d normally find at max level. I got my hands on a ring that automatically casts Corpse Explosion and a few other abilities on my necromancer. I wasn’t planning on using that skill, but when life hands you an absurdly powerful unique item, you change your plans and make use of it while you can.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

I was overwhelmed with a pile of legendary items I could bend my build around and, to me, that’s exactly the kind of problem you should have in an action RPG like Diablo 4. Nobody wants to be forced into playing the most accessible leveling build they read off of a guide. Everything should be strong enough for you to experiment. If there was one critical issue with loot before season 4, it was how long it took for your gear to enable an actual build. The leveling process was a desperate search for multiple pieces of loot with the right stats to make a buildsmooth enoughto use. In season 4, every build works while you’re leveling up, and individual pieces of gear can augment it with skills you might not have otherwise used. You no longer have to worry if your favorite skill is good. It’s all good and you get to decide how it’s good.

Diablo 4 at launch had so much potential to be a game that celebrated playing with every toy in the sandbox and letting you embody the fantasy of its classes. Its obsession with its own past—specifically Diablo 2—buried the joy of creating your own hero of Sanctuary. As Blizzard has put in the work over the last several months to transform its core systems, I’ve come to appreciate the ways that original philosophy anchored the game to a muted aesthetic that let its classes and monsters stand out. Before the game loosened up, it was hard to notice how sorcerer lighting skills crackle and leave trails that look like they’re animated at a low frame rate, giving it an almost-retro feel. Or how barbarians send out waves of heat like they’re going to combust into a rage at any moment. All of these things deserved to be in a game where you got to feel just as cool as it all looked.

Diablo 4, I’m so happy to say, is finally,finallythat game.

TOPICSActivision BlizzardBlizzard Entertainment

TOPICS

More about rpgElden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything20 hours in, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a mad, systems-driven sandbox that captures some of the best parts of games like StalkerLatestIt’s time for me to admit that AI-accelerated frame generation might actually be the way of the future and that’s a good thingSee more latest►

More about rpg

Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything20 hours in, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a mad, systems-driven sandbox that captures some of the best parts of games like Stalker

Nightreign knight holds his fist in menacing fashion

Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything

Henry chokes out a farmer while wearing absurd spectacles.

20 hours in, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a mad, systems-driven sandbox that captures some of the best parts of games like Stalker

LatestIt’s time for me to admit that AI-accelerated frame generation might actually be the way of the future and that’s a good thingSee more latest►

Latest

It’s time for me to admit that AI-accelerated frame generation might actually be the way of the future and that’s a good thing

Nvidia RTX 5090 Founders Edition rendered on a green background.

It’s time for me to admit that AI-accelerated frame generation might actually be the way of the future and that’s a good thing

See more latest►

Most Popular

Please join me in getting super excited for all the cool looking survival games coming in 2025 (and beyond)

Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: ‘sweaty’ teamplay vs. casual fun

Call of Duty’s $28 Squid Game skins are the perfect crossover for our capitalist dystopia, and Activision knows exactly what it’s doing

These are the 14 biggest upcoming RPGs of 2025—get ready for another amazing year for the genre

Five new Steam games you probably missed (January 6, 2025)

I’ve seen enough: No more forcing singleplayer studios to make mediocre live service games

6 games that could be bigger hits than you’re expecting in 2025

What are your 2025 gaming resolutions?

The FBI put a $5 million bounty on the ‘Cryptoqueen’ last year but still hasn’t found her, so take your pick: Russia, South Africa, or murdered on a yacht in 2018

The Witcher season 4: Everything we know about Hemsworth’s debut on The Continent

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review: An anarchic treasure trove of jokes and skits

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review—like juggling chainsaws on horseback

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Diablo is finally back#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

Diablo is finally back

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals