Platform(s): PC (version reviewed), PS5, Xbox Series
Genre: Action RPG, Loot Hoarding, Isometric

While far from what it used to be, Blizzard is hitting some decent strides as of late. First with the new version of Overwatch, and now with this year’s major Diablo IV action RPG expansion.

I was an OG Diablo IV player; I loved the overall game but its endgame was severely lacking. 2024’s expansion Vessel of Hatred was a “two steps forward, two steps back” sort of deal, with a lackluster campaign but a pretty cool Spiritborn class and a few endgame modes to contend with. But it’s nowhere near the levels of Diablo II: Lord of Destruction or even Diablo III: Reaper of Souls game-changer expansions.

Imagine, to my surprise that Diablo IV: Lords of Hatred is pretty close to those tier of expansions in terms of campaign work and shake-ups to the stale-for-two-years formula.

In Spite Of It All…

Let’s get the bad out of the way: a LOT of Diablo IV’s new endgame content is just a reiteration of Diablo III’s 10-year stretch endgame dungeons and short sessions, only in a new coat of paint. Even the “new” Horadric Cube is a staple of Diablo III’s way of item transfiguration and crafting.

But why fix what isn’t broken? Those modes like Nightmare Echoes (survival mode) and The Pit (Nephalim Rifts) are just as fun as they used to be. The Horadric Cube is easy to get into and has simple formulas to adhere to; it also lets you net Unique Items quicker than farming for specific ones assuming you’ve done the game’s main campaign once.

Plus, the new War Plans endgame mechanic adds more rewards if you follow an ordered plan of tackling dungeons and events. Just think of War Plans as a Diablo IV playlist that rewards you with more goodies, weapons, materials, and whatnot the longer you commit to them. You can level up different activities so that they throw more curveballs at you -for greater gain of course. Or just have them be consistent to your liking. It’s really customizable and up to you.

The two new classes -the Paladin and the Warlock- are fun additions to the already dynamic base roster & Spiritborn jungle person class. The Paladin uses Holy magic and crusade-like attacks to reign down yellow-and-white vengeance in many forms: Juggernaut-powered attacks, Blessed Shields that let you throw your buckler Captain America-style with ricochets, charging moves that give you stacks of defense the more momentum you keep. You can even transform into the angelic Arbiter for a few seconds for new homing moves and lightbeam attacks while staying invincible.

The Warlock lets you summon demons either as permanent companions or temporary aid, usually as makeshift wretched attacks. Some of them are Hellfire-laced, while others let you stay stealthed ala Shadowform mode to accumulate bigger critical hits. You can even summon Sigils on the ground that activate powerful attacks and buffs if you kill enemies on it, or if you sacrifice your demon summons. And you have a LOT of the latter, be it summoning exploding Fallen Lunatics to giant flaming skulls, to even taunting Wretches and smash-a-lot rampage demons. Did I also mention you can transform into an Arch Demon and have new skills that deal all sorts of big damage?

Much like how the Paladin uses the forces of pure light for its power, the Warlock uses red-laced black magic and abyssal depths for its retribution. These two playstyles are so different, yet give amazing levels of satisfaction when you unlock all their powers and level them up to their capacity, and then making them more omnipotent with the base game’s Paragon system and passives. Personally, I love the Paladin’s classic Diablo II Hammerdin setup -now just as wacky in part IV’s gameplay thanks to the Auras and Paragon buffs- and the Warlock’s Screaming Skulls modified to spit out smaller skulls and orbiting around my spellcaster. I can also transform temporarily into the Rampage Demon, leaping from fool to fool with my Screaming Skull still spinning around, setting everything ablaze. Because if you have an action RPG that lets you be a bloodletting mage that shoots out spitting fiery skulls, go all out, right? Diablo IV: Lords of Hatred lets you do that and a whole lot more with its plethora of builds for both classes.

The rest of the old classes -Barbarian, Druid, Sorcerer, Rogue, Necromancer, and Spiritborn- are also reworked thanks to the game’s new Skill Tree management and the Horadrim Sigil and Charm system. The former lets you customize your attacks and pick them to your playstyle. The latter lets you collect sets of Charms that boosts your class depending on how they play. Better buffs, more incentives to transform into Arbiters/Demonform, more focus on resource-management depending on your class: the Sigils and Charms do add a lot more to the game while also being a nod to past Diablo games. And if you have duplicates? Just use the Cube to change it to the one you want for the set. Easy peasy!

Anger Issues

While Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred changes up the base game in the best and most customizable way possible, and with more meat on its bones added to its already-decent pound of flesh, it also wraps up the epic storyline set up in the core title. Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred is the middle part of the Diablo IV overarching plot, while Lord of Hatred is the capstone. The 8-hour playthrough of the campaign brings you to the Mediterranean-themed yet dangerous isle of Skovos, ruled by Sanctuary’s Amazons and is the origin point of humanity born out of Lilith and Inarius’ doing. It also comes with what could be the series’ best music and audio choices, with sweeping orchestral scores that highlight the bright and tainted parts of the isle’s many different sections.

Basically you have to stop the titular Lord of Hatred Mephisto as he now dons the guise of ex-prophet Akarat and is leading humanity to its doom. The storyline concludes on a satisfactory note, which makes me wonder why they didn’t just do this in Vessel of Hatred. Well, we know, and it involves squeezing money out of action RPG fans who prefer their loot-hoarding games breezy and dopamine-triggering. But in spite of that, Blizzard at least has the decency to put in their all in making its single-player campaign a lot more fulfilling and in line with the overall Diablo mythos established since Diablo II onward.

Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred is the sort of expansion that does the Blizzard and Diablo name proud. With its overloaded features and upgrades, its story closure and addition of fun bosses that you can fight in harder settings & parameters in the endgame, and two new classes that both feel fun, powerful, and invigorating albeit in two different flavours, this Lord of Hatred deserves its crown.

Final Score: 90/100

Review copy provided by publisher.