I am rather late to Diablo IV, and it appears that the party is already over. After clocking 77 hours of gameplay over the past few weeks, I find myself struggling to find the desire to log in and continue my journey. The campaign is rather short, but the story is fascinating. I felt that I was truly making a difference in Sanctuary as I fought against the forces of Lilith – I had a purpose and a reason to play. However, after completing the campaign, I am left with little reason to continue. The endgame content becomes redundant after a few hours as you fight through dungeons you’ve likely already completed. The seasonal content is lackluster, though it is only accessible after completing the campaign. Season 3: Season of the Construct feels pointless. I am a completionist when it comes to video games; I am only satisfied when I have all the trophies. Yet, I might give up on Diablo IV.
After you defeat Lilith, you can change your World Tier to III, which includes stronger enemies, Nightmare Dungeons, Sacred armor and weapons, and tasks from The Tree of Whispers. To gain access to a Nightmare Dungeon, you must complete ten favors for the Tree to receive a cache that contains a random sigil to a random dungeon. When you complete the dungeon, you can enhance your glyphs in your Paragon Board, which grants great boosts in damage, defense, and unique properties. However, after completing a few Nightmare Dungeons, I didn’t care to do another. I don’t feel the need to constantly grind for a few extra bonuses in battle, and few players do. It’s repetitive to the point of redundancy and mindless in execution. How many times do I have to clear the same dungeon I completed during the campaign?
Hell Tides, events where you collect Aberrant Cinders (a special currency) to unlock chests with random rewards, are pointless. The armor and weapons I receive from the chests are not beneficial and often have low stats.
World Bosses, events where you team up with other players to defeat one of three terrifying creatures, are only fun a few times. There should be more than three bosses, for players get bored of fighting the same three over and over again. The rewards are also scant. Legion Events are not worth joining unless they are marked as a task from The Tree of Whispers.
When you finally reach level 70, things get a bit more interesting. World Tier IV allows you to fight echoes of past bosses for potential massive rewards. One of the final trophies of the game requires you to defeat Uber Lilith, a task I am eager to complete, but feels like a lifetime away. Ancestral and Unique weapons and armor are available in Tier IV, but it is difficult to pick up pieces that work with your build. For example, I am running a level 79 Blood Surge Necromancer. I do not benefit from any items that do not boost my five skills. I’m constantly returning to the blacksmith to dismantle rare pieces that I will never use.
As for the seasonal content, I find the Construct rather weak. He’s a cute little guy who follows you around, but he doesn’t help me in any way. The battle pass is incredibly expensive for the cosmetic pieces you get, many of which are ugly or build-specific.
As Season 5 approaches, I do not see the point in creating a new character, rediscovering the entire map, clearing the same dungeons, and participating in the same boring side quests. It’s redundant to the point of tears.
Diablo IV feels like a chore after the campaign. It has little to no replay value. Blizzard, we are not going to dump more money into your game to complete repetitive tasks. Endgame content is supposed to be exciting and rewarding to those who bravely beat the campaign, yet in Diablo IV, there is no payoff for the many, many hours invested.
