During a private alpha test, new footage has been leaked regarding some features and gameplay for Diablo IV – which is still in alpha and has no set release date.
Diablo is a dungeon crawler franchise that was created by Blizzard Entertainment in 1996 and has had a cult following ever since, with Diablo II in 2000, Diablo III in 2012, and a Diablo IV currently in the works since its announcement on November 1st, 2019, at Blizzcon 2019.
From what was shared with Blizzard fans, the latest game looks like it will still take place on the chaotic realm of Pandemonium, with similar maps and tile sets, but will feature an entirely new class: The Druid, along with the typical Barbarian, Sorceress, Rogue, and Necromancer.
The last big hint that fans were given regarding the game is the appearance of Lilith, the mother of demons. Is it possible that Diablo IV won’t feature Diablo at all, but rather the mother of demons as the big bad villain?
The game currently has no release date but is being developed for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and PC, and is currently slated for release sometime in 2023, which might change at the drop of a dime.
Leaked Features in Alpha
Diablo IV is currently in alpha testing by “friends and family” of Blizzard Entertainment, and, despite being in a private alpha, has experienced a leak that features a short gameplay video alongside images and details regarding character customisation, game creation and more.
A big part of the leak was sharing the difficulty classes that the game utilizes, now calling it “World Tiers”. In the alpha stage, the game only features two different difficulties, World Tier 1 and World Tier 2, and loot drops within the world will be tied to the World Tier Scaling, the same way that it was tied to the difficulty settings of the previous game, Diablo III.
World Tier 1 is described as Adventurer and is recommended for new players that are only looking for a slight challenge, who want to be able to defeat enemies easily, but will only receive average drops.
World Tier 2 is described as Veterans and is recommended for players who have played Diablo before and consider themselves veterans of the game and want to have their skills tested. Enemies in this world tier will be more challenging and will drop better loot, as well as it offers increased experience and increased gold in comparison to World Tier 1.
Will The New Game Be Worth It?
Fans are becoming increasingly concerned about the state of the games coming out of Blizzard Entertainment. In its beta, Overwatch 2 was called a ‘copy and paste’ of Overwatch with a few new characters, and nothing added to the franchise.
Fans are starting to think that Diablo IV is going to be a similar situation, especially with it always following the exploits of the same prince of destruction and being set in the same world each time.
Here’s to hoping that this isn’t the case.
