Hi everyone, I created this topic to be able to give the team my feedback on Diablo IV. Without a doubt this game can be defined as a worthy successor to the previous chapters, it boasts an excellent technical structure and a really large and intuitive interface. Later I will proceed to discuss all aspects of the game in order to provide a complete and exhaustive judgment:
-1 Graphic component: The graphic component is truly exceptional! Faithful to the style proposed in the previous diablos, this chapter has a truly remarkable structure. The game map is very vast if we consider that it is only a small part of the world of Diablo IV, the details are really many and the lighting and environmental effects perfectly animate the game world and feed the immersiveness of the game. player during the gameplay phase.
The textures are of high quality, especially note the animations of flames and snow, rich in textures and particles that make them almost visually realistic. The variety of locations (Between the open world, cities, catacombs and dungeons) is discreet, in fact the player will have the opportunity to explore every corner of a well-structured and relatively complex map at a graphic level at will.
I particularly appreciated the details of the first city visited: The buildings have a high level of detail and the textures are clearly visible and particularly pleasing to the eye, the gates and the interiors of the buildings have a balanced amount of details and objects and the coloring general is very intense and balanced in terms of tone, moreover the choice of the developers to make the general environment dark and sinister, best emphasizes the bloody and dark aspect of the game on a directly emotional level.
–1 Regarding the characters: The level of detail is extremely high, the characters have a solid skeletal structure and the body has been modeled to perfection, also thanks to the modern graphics engine, it is possible to deduce every single detail (Sweating, blood, tattoos etc .), which does nothing but further elevate this component.
Each character has unique outfits and aspects, which differentiate them considerably from the other classes that you can choose, moreover the possibility of customizing your character in every aspect, significantly increases the level of accessibility to customization, a very appreciated and particularly effective choice , especially during the game’s cutscenes, where it is possible to observe our character’s appearance in a more direct way.
–2 The monsters presented during this beta phase were carefully designed, I appreciated the fidelity of the models to the realistic conception that these monsters had during the development of the various fantasy-related video games, particular appreciation should be made for the appearance of spiders and skeletons , especially for lichs (One of them is possible to meet him during a challenge and I liked the animations given by his spell and the general look).
The attack and movement animations are fluid, both visually and when casting the skill. The creatures’ attack is animated correctly and they weren’t problematic in this respect. However, I believe that the creatures do not have a particular ability at an offensive level, which is why our character can literally make a carnage right from the initial stages of the game, an aspect taken care of by the difficulty of course, but which nevertheless limits and significantly unbalances the difficulty in favor of the player.
–3 Regarding the introduction of the game: Graphically I was amazed and extremely satisfied! The developers have shown a lot of effort and skill in the realization of this introductory scene, the characters and the environment presented boast an excellent level of quality in terms of graphics and an engaging initial storyline from the very first steps.
However, I would like to point out to the developers a bug in the affected video: There is a delay between speech and written text, i.e. the characters in the video speak and the text is updated late, so for players who may have auditory/visual limitations, they may have difficulty following the narrative context fluently, therefore I suggest to synchronize the spoken and written text more, in order to solve this problem.
–4 Regarding the dialogues and game cutscenes: I noticed a slight glitch understandable considering the beta phase: The translation is not yet complete (I tested the game in the ITALIAN language) and I noticed that the missions were translated correctly in the mission book , however when the player has to choose the dialogue options with the characters, they are displayed with the default language (ENGLISH), I suggest a future resolution to improve this aspect of the game in terms of quality;
P.S. I also want to point out to the developers another problem encountered during the cutscenes: In some cases, the characters tend to produce a certain delay during the dialogues, i.e. after giving the first answer, the discussion continues after a short delay and no smoothly, as you would expect, so I suggest the developers to visualize that as well.
–5 Small bug found: In addition to what has been said so far in terms of graphics, I would like to point out a small bug found several times during the exploration phase: Some interactable objects (in my case a pile of rocks), were not interactable and with continuous beams of sparkling light that periodically enveloped the objects concerned, therefore the game marked them as interactable, but in fact it was not possible for me to destroy them or interact with them.
This bug seems to afflict only certain objects, therefore I would suggest to the developers during the rechecking phase to verify that all the objects inserted in the map are correctly interactable, both on the first pass and when they will be regenerated, in order to avoid the recurrence of this bug;
-2 Audio component: The developers have found an excellent balance between its reproduction or not during the gameplay phase, in fact I appreciated the gloomy and gloomy aspect of the soundtrack during the exploration phase, particularly emphasized during the boss fights and explorations underground, especially the catacombs and temple ruins.
The sound effects related to the launch of skills and the various attack moves with weapons are correctly synchronized and aurally pleasing, it is possible to hear every single slash or magic perfectly and the quality greatly affects the immersive level from the auditory point of view of the player during the gameplay phase;
-3 Game interface: This component undoubtedly deserves particular attention, as it is extremely rich and articulated in every part and manages to support every single aspect of the game in a surprising and intuitive way. In order to provide an opinion on the various parts that compose it, I will divide the argument into three parts:
–1 Game layout: Without a doubt the developers have made good use of the experience with the previous diablos, in fact every feature has been designed and inserted in premeditated sections, in such a way as to guarantee the maximum level of accessibility and comfort on the part of the player, whether it is the game menu and options menu, or the numerous features present during the gameplay phase;
–2 UI interface: This beta presented a remarkable level of stability at the system level, in fact I had no problems at an interactive level, every single feature was correctly accessible and functional and the system responded very well to all requests made during my gameplay period. However, it must be noted that in the testing phase there were continuous peaks in random periods of performance, in those peaks the game significantly reduced the fps for a very short period, dramatically increasing the use of resources (especially the cpu), this is not attributable to the pc, but it seems to be a problem at the code level and therefore I suggest a thorough check in order to detect the problem;
–3 HUD Interface: This part of the interface is AWESOME! Every single piece of information is perfectly documentable at any time, I appreciated the return to the classics as regards the arrangement of skills and quick access, as well as the aspect of the life bar and fury/magic points, I find that a visual representation is more interesting from a perspective level compared to a linear bar with a numerical value of life points.
The number of quick access slots is substantial and I appreciated their link with the level, in such a way as to provide a greater sense of progression and force the player to decide what to give up and which weapons to prioritize in terms of skills and attacks normal. The game inventory is very vast and the interface of the same is well structured and documented, each single section has numerous features and in terms of information it is definitely on another level.
The options menu has a surprisingly high level of accessibility in all its subsections, I particularly appreciated the large amount of accessibility options in the appropriate section, each player will have the opportunity to change most of the game features at a gameplay/level technical in such a way as to meet one’s needs, this choice is not only appreciated but is remarkably useful for meeting each category of players;
-4 Controllers: As far as gaming peripherals are concerned, I’ve played with both peripherals (Keyboard + Mouse - Controller) and was extremely happy with both. I’ll discuss my experience with both peripherals below:
–1 Keyboard + Mouse: The mapping proposed by the developers keeps faith with the choices made in the previous diablo and similar, the ability to move the character with the mouse and with the same button to perform attacks with the assigned slot makes it more comfortable and summarizes considerably the amount of keys used. Each function has been assigned to very specific keys, it is possible to notice a certain level of intuitiveness and comfort and I had no difficulty either putting them into practice or memorizing the assigned functions.
However, I would like to suggest to the developers the possibility of implementing 3 new movement keys, in order to reproduce the classic WSAD movement or with the arrows, as I believe that it could be more effective than using only the mouse for movement and attack. in this way it will be possible to meet the needs of players accustomed to the classic movement commands and give the possibility to decide whether to move with the pointer or with the keys;
–2 Controller: The controller used is the following: XBOX S SERIES CONTROLLER. No doubt this peripheral is preferable to the keyboard, as the developers have synthesized and mapped all the game features in a simply perfect way! These choices guarantee a remarkable level of immersion right from the first steps and the mapping style meets the players in an intuitive and effective way, allowing a fluid and efficient gameplay experience;
-5 Gameplay: This aspect of the game is particularly complex and articulated, I believe that the developers have outdone themselves by making the combat system very varied, both from a practical point of view and from the point of view of learning individual skills through a extremely large and complex skill tree, which progresses as the player levels up, this allows the player to determine the direction he wants his player to take and the possibility to reset for free until level 15 allows to explore all the various possibilities existing.
Without a doubt there are significant imbalances in the class I tested (Barbarian), especially in the passive skill associated with dual weapons: The ability to increase damage and attack speed based on consecutive attacks is a lethal weapon for any enemy encountered during the beta phase and enhancing this effect only makes the imbalance much more evident, as it allows you to literally mow down anyone, normal monsters or bosses.
Although annihilating everything is part of the nature of the game, I believe that in the long run it can yield a certain repetitiveness and domination without having struggled or put in the effort to choose the right skills and the right weapons for your character, therefore I suggest to the developers to better balance this class, as not only double weapons, but also blunt and similar weapons prove extremely lethal against any enemy (Increasing the difficulty clearly this balance is corrected, however for those who want a normal experience, this could make an imbalance more evident).
The various branches of player enhancement whether it’s the skill tree or weapon affinities make the gameplay considerably more complex and interesting, since everything has been deliberately designed to ensure constant and continuous progression and increase game longevity. successful and successful decisions. Personally I really appreciate the wide variety of passive and active skills that you can choose from, I believe that this choice has a distinctly positive effect on the configuration of your character’s combat capabilities and are preferable to more synthetic and direct skill trees.
As anticipated above, I believe that monsters have relatively few offensive capabilities in terms of variety, this translates into a monotony during the gameplay phase which could affect general longevity. In order to improve this aspect, I would like to propose the following suggestions:
–1 Combo of attacks for normal monsters: Normal monsters that do not enjoy particular effects will be able to perform normal attacks and combos, these will inflict significantly higher damage and can be dodged by somersaults but cannot be interrupted by attacks by the player (Except for stun skills);
–2 Unique abilities related to the type of enemy: Some monsters encountered during the gameplay phase were slightly larger and different, however at first glance it did not particularly affect the war. Therefore I suggest to implement unique passive and active skills that can only be used by high-level units belonging to that category (Wargs, undead skeletons, clans, etc.). Some examples could be:
—1 Totem of Resurrection (Skeletons): This macabre totem can be summoned by medium and large skeleton monsters, this totem increases the damage of skeletons, their life points and also gives a % chance that skeletons will be reborn once once eliminated with 50% of the total life points only once per enemy (If you destroy the skeleton that summoned it, the relative totem will disappear (The effect of the totems following the first one will have reduced effectiveness and the resurrection % is not affected);
—2 Howl (Warg): This deafening howl summons more wolves and increases the damage dealt by all nearby wolves for a short time;
—3 Rage of the clan (Clan): This active ability allows a lieutenant of the clan (medium and large units) to channel a blow, once the channel is over, the creature will proceed to leap to the target’s position and inflict a heavy damage from a smash, this hit deals damage to an area (reduced) and increases as you get closer to the center, where the damage will be maximum;
—4 Blood shield (starting boss): I think this boss didn’t prove to be particularly difficult against the player, he had a significant amount of life points, however limited in terms of offense, therefore I suggest this ability: The boss absorbs life of all nearby creatures (including the player) equal to a specified % based on maximum health and converts them into a shield for itself. When under the effect of the blood shield, the boss will start channeling an ability that can only be interrupted if the player destroys the shield in time:
—5 Pillar of Blood: The boss will begin to concentrate the accumulated blood into a sphere placed on top of his head, both upper limbs will position themselves next to the sphere, once channeled completely, the sphere will explode creating a burning column of blood which will hit a large area and deal massive damage to the player and all creatures present;
—6 Mother’s gift (initial boss): This will be a passive ability of the boss, the mother revived him and gave him a part of her power, thanks to it the boss will be immune to crowd control effects and will inflict damage moreover, damage from magical sources will be halved as long as the boss is alive and this effect extends to the units created by him;
—7 Death Call (Starting Boss): When the boss loses 50% of life points a cutscene will appear where he will draw a worn sword and plunge it into his body, at which time he will release his true power, for the rest of the combat will have increased attack speed, increased damage and periodically his attacks will summon blood projectiles that will chase the player, also his ultimate ability will be active;
—8 Final Reaping: This ability will allow the boss to transform his weapon into a scythe surrounded by an aura of death, once obtained the boss will attract the darkness of the temple to himself and will attempt to pierce the player with the weapon with an aimed attack, if the hit is successful the player will instantly lose 90% of his max life points and will suffer a penalty to movement speed and reduction of the healing received by 50%, he will also instantly lose 40% of the accumulated fury;
–3 Skill cooldown: A factor that causes the imbalance in my opinion can be found in the fact that the skills have no cooldown, even if a balance has been attempted through costs in terms of fury, certain classes could accumulate it relatively quickly, allowing for a spam of skills that would wreak havoc in any combat window:
In order to balance this situation, I suggest giving passive skills a cooldown, in order to reduce skill spam and more favor normal weapon attacks and the exploitation of passive skills;
-6 Storyline: This aspect has been particularly taken care of by the developers and I appreciated the immersive level given in the introductory video. I particularly appreciated the first impact given by the mother Lilith. His rebirth was initially a surprise, as in the introductory video it was not predictable until the fateful moment came.
Her rebirth has wreaked havoc on her world, corrupting the hearts of mortals and causing them to open up to sin and thwart the few religious figures who have resisted her mother’s call. Without a doubt this open beta leaves room for a very rich storyline, both in terms of primary missions and for the considerable amount of secondary missions, which not only focus on killing groups of enemies, but also focus on the most common themes , in order to guarantee a variety to contrast with the warlike nature of the game;
In conclusion, I am more than satisfied with this open beta, this game without a doubt has taken the Diablo series to another level! The graphic and interface components are at an incredibly high and detailed level, my gameplay experience has been fantastic and I will definitely acquire the full game, albeit aware that there are numerous imbalances related to damage from passive and active skills and problems related to performance during the gameplay phase, this does not particularly affect my judgment, as the game boasts an unprecedented level of immersiveness and style and I believe these issues will be resolved before the long-awaited launch day.