Diablo IV

As soon as Blizzard released Diablo IV in June 2023, fans of the franchise were ecstatic. After all, the series hadn’t had a sequel in 11 years, and because of that, the hype was through the roof. But as soon as the game hit the public, problems began.

Controversies involving servers, microtransactions, endgame content, and nerfs became constant. But does that make it a bad game? Stick around to find out. Let’s take a tour through the world of Sanctuary, which—between hits and misses—can offer a pretty interesting experience for the player.

Main Overview of Diablo IV

First and foremost, the game succeeds in maintaining the atmosphere and mythology of its predecessors. The story takes place decades after Diablo III. Here, Lilith, daughter of Mephisto and one of the Prime Evils, is focused on corrupting humanity.

The only thing standing in her way is you and other Nephalem—beings born from the union of angels and demons. When creating your character, you can choose from several classes, each with their own traits:

• Barbarian – A warrior focused on heavy combat.
• Druid – A class that manipulates nature magic and shapeshifts into animals.
• Sorcerer – A character who controls elemental magic: fire, ice, and lightning.
• Necromancer – A spellcaster who controls blood, bones, and summons undead.
• Rogue – A hybrid class with both ranged and melee attacks.

Beyond these main categories, you can customize race and attributes. Once you’ve chosen your path, your adventure begins. This is the first game in the series to feature a fully open world with five distinct regions, each with its own characteristics.

Controversies That Followed the Game From the Start

From the launch day and in the weeks that followed, Diablo IV had several server issues. Many players had to wait hours just to log in—even those who bought early access.

Often, players would get disconnected after finally entering the game. And unlike many MMORPGs, Diablo IV requires a constant internet connection—even for solo, single-player play—which really angered some players.

Beyond those issues, other factors upset the player base. Complaints included a repetitive and unsatisfying endgame, unbalanced classes, excessive nerfs, and frustrating seasonal progression.

Eventually, players also began complaining about in-game microtransactions and a paid battle pass. To make things worse, when these issues were reported to Blizzard, the company was considered slow to respond.

Does That Make Diablo IV a Bad MMORPG?

Actually, no! While many of these elements hurt the initial player experience, that doesn’t mean the game lacks admirable qualities. In fact, some highlights include:

• A beautiful, dark, gothic open world. Each area is filled with secrets and surprises.
• A robust character customization system. With all the graphical advances since the last game, this stands out.
• Fluid combat with satisfying mechanics that bring a dynamic feel to gameplay.

As for the story, it’s your journey to defeat Lilith. In addition to main and side quests, there are various open-world events that encourage player interaction. Many of these events are PvP-oriented.

How Is the Game Doing Now?

Unfortunately, the issues that frustrated the community led to a significant loss in player engagement. In the first few months after launch, Diablo IV boasted an impressive monthly average of 24.4 million players on its servers.

But in the months that followed, numbers plummeted to just 641,000 active players. After October 2023, there are no official updates on player counts, but the number may have dropped further since then.

The game’s biggest player bases are in the United States (21%), Germany (10.10%), and Russia (8.68%). Brazil has a smaller share, with about 5.91% of Diablo IV players coming from the country.

Of course, Blizzard—being no fool—is trying to keep players engaged. They’re releasing seasonal content and frequent patches to improve the experience. However, for many, the game’s negative start was a serious setback.

Diablo IV: Conclusion

Despite all the controversies, Diablo IV can be considered a good game. Even with its occasional flaws, it stays true to the core of the franchise. So whether you’re a long-time fan or just someone who enjoys a solid ARPG, this game delivers.

And for the more critical players who still dismiss it despite improvements, it’s worth noting that Blizzard hasn’t given up. Among their most notable efforts to win players back:

• Blizzard now maintains regular communication with the Diablo IV community. Continuous feedback is driving updates and improvements.
• They are redesigning the endgame to offer a fresh, non-repetitive experience.
• Seasonal content continues to improve, with bug fixes, server stability, and class balancing.
• Finally, Blizzard has become much quicker and more efficient in responding to player concerns. Looks like they’ve learned their lesson.

Will all this bring back the massive player base the game has the potential to attract? Only time will tell. Either way, compared to its launch, investing in Diablo IV now is a much better deal. In fact, it might be a pleasant surprise if you’ve never played it before.