Diablo 3 - Personal Review

I played a lot of Diablo, and its sequel Diablo 2 back on my old PC. In fact I pumped so many hours into both titles that the franchise is on my shortlist of favourite all time video games. Having said that, I have not once played the PC version of Diablo 3; therefore my first experience of the title came with the Xbox 360 release.

 

Let’s get the negatives out of the way first – or should I say negative. The story in Diablo 3 is by far the titles weakest element. Fortunately, in the case of these action adventure titles, it isn’t that important anyway. Purely giving you a reason to slay the masses of evil creatures sprawled across the lands. Essentially it’s the same stuff you saw in the first two titles; the evil demon Diablo and his Prime Evils are threatening to consume the world again. It’s the player who has been employed to stop them. It’s nothing new and nothing exciting.

 

 

On a different note, if you scroll through various forums it has been noted that the graphics of the 360 version aren’t quite up there with the PC counterpart. However, it’s a massive achievement to show off this game, still with a high quality pallet, running at 60 fps and holding up to 50 characters on screen at once – and never once in my playtime have I experienced any form of lag. So personally I feel it looks great.

 

The sounds that complement the graphics are top notch too. Each direct hit feels weighted and strong due to the clatter of swards, explosions from spells and cries from vanquished creatures. The whole experience feels brutal and perfectly suited to the gameplay style.

 

Speaking of gameplay, this is exactly the area that the game excels in. You start by selecting one of five available characters: the Barbarian, a melee heavy brute; the Monk, a fast, agile and deadly martial artist; the Demon Hunter, a professional archer that can employ some traps; the Witch Doctor, a voodoo summoner of undead and other minions; and the Wizard, an arcane magic wielding powerhouse. Each can be made to be female or male, unlike the gender sets of the previous titles.

 

I’ve always been a fan of the ‘tanks’ in cooperative games so I’ve instantly found myself wandering around with a two-handed axe wielding Barbarian. Although I have seen the other characters played, or have tried them myself, so I can be sure that they offer a varied set of abilities and traits that set each of them apart.

 

Diablo 3 is set in the same isometric action-based devises of the previous titles and you can easily find yourself exploring every crack and crevice for each of the ‘out of town’ combat areas. Most sets of enemies drop gold, weapons, armour or other forms of loot for you to add to your inventory and upgrade. The groups of enemies are frequent, but not to the point that map exploration ever becomes a chore, so each ‘loot’ quest becomes completely exciting and unexpected.

 

The maps, this time around, are not truly randomly generated like they were in Diablo 2. The geography, meaning the shape and borders of each map, is always the same, but which dungeons are open as well as their placement and contents are randomised.

 

 

The game focuses on raiding dungeons, collecting the aforementioned loot and boss encounters. Your character levels up, unlocks new skills and goes from townsman (or a woman) that struggles with Skeletons to a demon hunting god that makes short work of any foe. And it’s this constantly moving, and improving, platform that keeps you playing. You can even craft weapons and armour, and upgrade them, to push the character growth even further.

 

The lifespan of this game is massive; I’ve played through the campaign twice now and still haven’t scratched the surface properly. There are four difficulties to choose from, ranging between Medium and Inferno, as well as the opportunities to jump in and out of online co-op with the flick of a button. You can also, if you wish, play through Hardcore mode; which gives your poor character only one life.

 

Probably, and again I’ve heard it mentioned on forums, the biggest change between the 360 version and its PC parent is the control system. Each face button, or trigger, relates to a specific skill, which can be assigned on the fly. Each option opens as the player levels up and each skill comes with its own distinct advantages and disadvantages for you to be aware of. The menus are now set up in a radial style and allows for quick and simple navigation.

 

Additionally, the 360 version of the game features a dodge ability, linked to the right control stick, which I am told didn't exist in the PC version. When you're going toe to toe with a really nasty boss and getting yourself ground to a pulp, it helps to be able to roll out of the way or do a back flip to evade that next strike. It can by you some time to let your skills power up or use a badly needed health potion, and I have no doubt that effective use of the dodge ability is the key to surviving and winning Hardcore mode. It's a great addition to an already great game.

 

Diablo 3 kept pretty much all of the best parts of Diablo and Diablo 2, and has been upgraded dramatically from its PC outing based on fan feedback. The game itself has been nothing but a blast to play, and I can already predict my girlfriend is going to end up hating this game for the amount of time that it's going to suck away from my life in the next few months.