‘Diablo Immortal’ Review – A Deal with Diablo
Diablo Immortal (Free) is here in some strange way. It was announced in November 2018 during a presentation that has gone down in meme history. It seems like a million years ago that someone said, "Do you guys not have phones?" That person probably felt bad about what he said as soon as he said it. The fans' explosive (but not in a good way) response. A steady and steady change. A global pandemic. How Apple Arcade became popular. All that nonsense about Fortnite between Epic and Apple. Blizzard and Activision are being accused of very bad things. Microsoft is going to buy the whole shebang. And Diablo Immortal is here in some strange way.
How can I write anything about this? What can I say about a game that just by being there turned into a story? Even now, people are still talking about it. Some countries won't be able to get the game because they have laws against loot boxes. Is anyone interested in the game itself? Or is this just a video game version of an accident on the side of the road that everyone stops to look at before moving on? I've already put a lot of time into Diablo Immortal, so I'm sure I can give you some useful details. However, I doubt that the big picture will surprise many people.
It's a lot of fun to play. It's hard to stop reading it. Many things have been simplified (like getting rid of mana and adding cooldowns), but it's still very much Diablo. Fighting enemies, exploring dungeons, getting loot, and building your character all have enough of the right feel to give you the experience you want. It's a full-fledged MMO version of the idea, and as you play, you'll see other people running around and talking. Even with that change, it has most of the things that make the Diablo series so popular, and it feels like it has been polished to a mirror finish. Whether you play by yourself or with other people, it's a great way to kill time. As I thought, really.
But, as expected, it also relies heavily on a number of ways to make money, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel their effects right away and see much scarier things in the future. I can see that its headlight is shining. The wind is carrying the sound of its whistle. It's on the way. And, yes, it is. This is a mobile game that is free to play. It has to make money in some way. And it will do this in a number of well-known ways. Battle passes. "Unique" deals. Making resources just a little bit scarcer in a way that makes the problem worse over time. Cosmetics. Especially the end game seems to be aimed at the wealthy. As I thought, really.
I have to say that Diablo Immortal doesn't do any of these things particularly badly compared to other free-to-play games. All of this is pretty standard, and the game is made in a way that lets you enjoy a lot of what it has to offer without even thinking about spending money. If you're used to all of this money-making stuff, you might be more worried about the game's server/character structure, which makes it hard to play with your friends and means you have to plan ahead. You can't play together if you're not on the same server. If you buy a Battle Pass, it can only be used with a certain character. I think these rules are silly, but they are what they are.
You can use a controller, but touch controls may work better in this case. Your skills and magic are easier to aim, and normal things like moving and fighting feel more natural. You also have some control over how the device works, and if you want to save the battery on your device, you may want to change how it works. When it works and looks well, the game is great. Even on a few older devices, it still looks pretty good. The audio quality isn't quite what I expect from this series, but it's fine.
Diablo Immortal feels like a talented team put in a lot of time and effort to make a great mobile MMO that doesn't hurt the reputation of the well-known brand, and then they added all the depressing things you have to do to make money with this kind of thing. It wouldn't be fair to punish this game just because it follows the broken rhythm of our market, so I won't. And I'm sure a lot of people will play it for a long time and have a great time while spending a lot less than the average price of a new premium Diablo game. We haven't seen anything new when it comes to making money from free-to-play games, and I think most of us have learned to ignore them. So we will. That’s how it is.
But, man, I'm kind of sick of this. When I take a step back and look at how we've gotten used to things, it makes me sad. This game is very good. I want to suggest that people play it, but I know that if I do, a small number of people who read this won't be able to resist the allure of the microtransactions, and a small number of those people will spend more than they can afford. And that makes me feel bad. I can't in any way feel good about that. I hate being in this pickle. I hate that this is how game designers have to make games. It feels like I'm talking about a pack of cigarettes. Again, Diablo Immortal doesn't have to pay for these mistakes. I guess this is just my chance to go on and on about it.
I'm obviously not sure what to do. But it's only fair to review Diablo Immortal the same way we've reviewed similar games in the past and probably will in the future. Based on those criteria, yes, this is a great action-RPG. Go clear out about 12 gigabytes of space, download it, and start playing. It will try to sell you things, but it will do so in a very soft way until you are very far in. Maybe more in-depth than most of you will play. It is time for Diablo Immortal. It's everything we could have hoped for and everything we feared.
