Improving Controller Usability in Diablo 4 for Consoles

Console Discussion
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Improving Controller Usability in Diablo 4 for Consoles

Hi Blizzard Team and Fellow Players,

I wanted to start a discussion about Diablo 4 on consoles and a pain point I think many of us are facing: the lack of mouse and keyboard support. Having played the game both on PC and Xbox, I can say that while the controller experience is decent, there are several areas where quality of life improvements could greatly enhance gameplay on consoles. Here are a few suggestions that I believe would address some of these issues:

  1. Item Selection Using the Right Joystick:
    One of the biggest frustrations is not being able to select or highlight specific items after defeating bosses or in general looting situations. For example, after killing a tormented boss, it would be extremely helpful if we could use the right joystick to choose the items we want to pick up, instead of being forced to grab items in whatever order the game selects. This issue is especially prominent in Helltides where boss materials are often picked up last, meaning I need to throw away 25 rare items just to grab a couple of important boss materials like exquisite bloods. The ability to select items directly would eliminate this headache.

  2. Controller Ability Targeting:
    There’s also a noticeable limitation with targeting abilities like “Teleport,” “Leap,” “Shadowstep,” or “Meteor.” On PC, mouse users can precisely choose where these abilities land, but on console, the game often decides the location for us, limiting the plays we can make. A feature that allows us to hold down an ability and then control its targeting using a crosshair or target area with the joystick would open up a lot of strategic options and bring us closer to the flexibility PC players enjoy even while taking a lot longer to do so, It should at least be a option players can enable in the controller menu.

  3. “Shift” Function on Controllers:
    Another significant difference between PC and console is the lack of a “Shift” key equivalent on controllers. This feature on PC allows players to force-cast abilities, which is critical for certain builds. A button that could replicate this function would be incredibly beneficial and allow console players to fully explore build diversity without feeling at a disadvantage.

  4. Item Usability Filter in the Stash:
    Lastly, both console and PC players would benefit from a filter option in the stash that shows only the items that a character can currently use, with the ability to toggle between usable and locked items. If there’s concern about space for this feature, the “magic” item rarity filter could be replaced, as no blue items are used beyond the first 20 minutes of gameplay and are certainly not stashed for safekeeping.

OR: enable support for mouse and keyboard on consoles for Diablo 4.

I believe these changes would significantly improve the console experience and make Diablo 4 more enjoyable for controller users. What do other console players think? Would these features help with some of the frustrations you’re experiencing as well?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts!

Heinrich1st

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I agree mostly for your 2 first suggestions.
#1 because, mostly, in Helltide, lots of junk are in the ground, with a few materials or equipment i want…and it’s nearly impossible, for console player, to choose the item we pick. And it’s not fun, and it’s dangerous, if i need to trash rare item to the ground, to be able to pick the best materials.

#2 YES, being unable to cast meteor or firewall abilities where we want make these build much less effective. Even the limited teleport cast on console is much worse than on pc.
ADDING holding the button, the choose where to cast, and also KEEPING the way it is now , would add a lot to the console version.

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Definitely would be nice if channeled abilities were cast at the same speed at hitting the button over and over till your fingers fall off. :rofl:

My WW Barb with Tyrials is has MUCH higher DPS if I kill my fingers versus holding the button down…which is not fun.

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As a fellow Whirlwind (WW) main, I completely agree. Maximizing WW DPS shouldn’t come at the cost of risking carpal tunnel. The fact that not constantly tapping the Whirlwind button leads to such a significant damage loss really makes the build ineffective for most content. A 50%+ damage difference is just too much.

It’s not just about the extra Tyrael bolts (which honestly feels like a bug, considering how tapping shoots more than when channeling), but also the fact that the number of Dust Devils from the “Dust Devil” aspect is drastically reduced when channeling. This also seems like an unintended issue.

On top of that, it feels unfair when PC players can use macros to optimize the click speed for channeling/unchanneling Whirlwind, effectively tripling the number of Tyrael bolts and Dust Devils. This adds another 50% more DPS than what’s achievable on a controller. Every streamer I’ve seen playing Whirlwind Barb seems to be using this macro, which makes all their followers do the same & essentially are clicking 100’s of times always. Due to channeling abilities functioning differently when repeatedly unchanneling and channeling them and provided an enormous damage boost in the case of whirlwind, it feels like that using a macro should be considered an exploit.

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Totally agree with everything you said. If you make a game with channeled abilities then that should be just as effective and killing your fingers mashing buttons.

The ONE good thing (bug most likely) about channeling is it will keep the Tyrael bolts going even when not at full health.

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In Diablo III I got the idea to ditch PC and move to PS4. At first the targeting seemed worse and menu felt clunky. So, I played dozens of single player games as well as Call of Duty, to get good. After about a year I am now super good at Xbox / controller, and Diablo IV today feels like it’s made for controller. I can predict my aiming, I’m fluent with menu. You can’t just switch from PC to Xbox and complain about your skill issue.

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It isn’t a skill issue. The pc is basically cheating compared to console. Mouse and keyboard vs controller is no comparison. Especially in gauntlet. Which should have the leaderboards separated by input, not platform.

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By the way I absolutely agree with every suggestion. Right stick would be perfect for selecting items instead of targets, especially since the left stick already does that. The controller does need a way of casting precisely and a shift button to cast without moving. And the stash is completely unusable while leveling because the items you can use just blend in with the sea of x marks and lock icons. Also NOBODY SAVES OR NEEDS A BUTTON FOR MAGIC OR RARE OR CONSUMABLES ITEMS IN THE STASH! A button that shows what my character is currently able to use, the number of items in each tab they can use and blacks out the rest would be ACTUALLY useful. PLEASE USE THESE SUGGESTIONS ASAP! Also, separate the Trials Leaderboards by current input instead of current system! I really don’t like competing against players that have such a huge advantage, Call of Duty did this exact thing for the same reason. Also while I’m at it, why does Hardcore have a repair tab at the blacksmith and a death penalty warning in the pits? If I die, my items aren’t damaged and it doesn’t add time to the counter. It deletes the character. Like a boss. Hardcore 4 life.

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It’s cute that you think getting better with a controller somehow erases the technical gap between console and PC, but you’re completely missing the point. This isn’t about a ‘skill issue,’ and no amount of practice with a controller is going to change the fact that mouse and keyboard users have an undeniable advantage. The original post is talking about a 50%+ damage gap that exists because PC players can use macros and tap inputs that are impossible to replicate with a controller.

You can pat yourself on the back all you want for being ‘super good’ on a controller, but that doesn’t fix the fact that you’re playing with a handicap. Controllers literally can’t keep up with the input speed of a mouse and keyboard, no matter how hard you try. So pretending this is about skill when it’s actually a technical limitation just makes your whole argument sound delusional.

At the end of the day, it’s not about you ‘getting good’—it’s about the fact that controller players are at a severe disadvantage, and ignoring that just makes you look like you’re living in denial.

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How many console games have you beat? Because I have a list of games I beat since switching to console to get good. I just checked and the number of games I beat since switching to console in 2020 is 61.

Yeah. The skill between me and someone trying console fresh out of PC is definitely a skill issue.

The first time I tried Diablo 3 on console it felt really clunky after PC. I had to beat dozens of games first to understand controller.

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Lmfao. I’ve used controllers since Playstation 2. I’ve beat over 150 games on controller. That’s not difficult. This is about the competitive level gameplay that you clearly completely lack any understanding of. Skill issue, you clearly have zero mouse and keyboard skill or experience if you think you can charge around a corner with controller on barb, or if you think you can beat macro input speed with controller or if you can force your Teleport to actually port to Any mob of your choosing even if they are close to each other.

Either you lack any sense of actual knowledge on this subject or you have serious reading comprehension skill opportunities and may want to work on that skill more so than your video game skills.

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Well I beat all the level 200 Tormented Bosses including Lilith, and I cleared Infernal Hordes (Tier 8) in season 5. On my Xbox Series X / Controller.

I don’t appreciate you gas lighting me. If you want to play on PC, get a PC.

Also as far as my PC skills. I was Top DPS (#1) in my World of Warcraft Mythic Raid (full clear and final raid / boss of the expansion) on my Balance Druid. In Mythic Raids I dabbled with Macros, and I settled on spamming the keys as a more responsive and consistent play style.

Also in Diablo 3 season 11 on PC I ended the season with 5 classes in the top 1,000 leaderboard for solo Greater Rift clears. 5 classes. Ended the season. Yes.

So I can tell you now that Console is fine. You can hold down the ability button on controller, and I prefer spamming the buttons as a more responsive and consistent play style.

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Been asking for M&K support since the game came out. Makes no sense to me that they didn’t include it in the crossplay game that can play with PC, where PC can use a controller with zero issue and doesn’t have to change settings, since it means they had to strip out M&K support for the console version of the game. The “reason” they gave for it was balance since it would give M&K people an advantage in PvP since console can just turn off crossplay to not play against M&K people. They also admitted awhile ago that people don’t really engage in the PvP so the reason for exlcuding it at this point is they just don’t want to add it to the game.

So I agree, I would take better controller support but I still think they should just add M&K support to the console version of the game since giving people options on how they want to engage in your game is never a bad thing. Even more so when they can clearly see from the PC people who have both that it works.

I have PC friends who play with a controller and I have PC friends who play M&K. Giving them the option for both is not a bad thing. Now just give us that option on console as well.

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You keep mentioning these “accomplishments” of yourself for a reason that controller is just as good as mouse and keyboard.

None of what you posted actually impressed me anyways. I beat tormented bosses within 24 hours of S5 in hardcore. I beat t7 in the first week. & T8 second week. So what? Obviously controller is fine for those kind of easy game modes.
I’m talking about competitive level play, where the difference is as noticeable as your lack of reading comprehension and need to show off some arbitrary accomplishments.

Lol seriously. Controller and mouse and keyboard are night and day for anyone that actually understands top level game play & either way how is your understanding of the controller supposed to change the fact that it would help every other console player.

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Exactly… Top 1000? I was #5 in solo sorc in Hardcore. And the op was #4 the last week of s5 and both were top 10 many times throughout. Trust us when we say that mouse and keyboard gives you a HUGE advantage.

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I must admit I was wrong. I was wrong. You were right. My bad. Raxxanterax on his “Evade Spiritborn” proves your point. Just using Logitech G Hub to spam space bar every 100ms. Completely dominated the end game.