Gaming, Opinion, PC

Why Am I Playing Diablo III in 2018?

Because I don’t have a phone.

Jokes aside – I obviously have a phone in this line of work – I recently got myself the PC version of Diablo III during Blizzard’s Black Friday sale. Of course, I purchased the Reaper of Souls expansion too, along with the Rise of the Necromancer pack. But the real question is: why am I playing Diablo III, six years after its initial release?

Well, for starters, it’s my first time going into a Diablo game, so it’s a brand new experience for me. After spending upwards of 50 hours in the game, I definitely see the appeal of Diablo III – it doesn’t feel out of place at all in 2018.

On the surface, Diablo III is a loot-based action RPG, and loot impacts your power level the most. There are a few game modes to choose from: Campaign, Adventure, and Challenge Rifts. But before you can access the former two, you’ll have to complete the Campaign first.

That’s totally fine, as Campaign mode is a lot of fun. This is especially the case if you’re into the lore of Diablo, and even though I have absolutely no idea what happened in the previous games, I thoroughly enjoyed the storyline.

While the Campaign is quite enjoyable, it’s only a small part of what makes Diablo III such a fun game – the Adventure mode has a lot more content to offer. You will mainly do one of two things: jump into rifts of various difficulties, or do bounties, which require you to complete random objectives in different maps.

You will be doing a lot of these to complete your gear, as bounties and rifts will reward you with various equipment. This is the grinding aspect of Diablo III, which can feel cumbersome after some time. Imagine spending hours on end hunting for a specific Legendary item that refuses to drop; RNG plays a huge role in this game.

Thankfully, that’s where Seasons come into the picture. One season usually lasts for a few months, and if you complete the Season Journey’s objectives, you will be rewarded with a specific full set for your chosen character. While the sets change every season – and some are better than others – it does make it much easier to get good equipment.

But there is a caveat to Seasons: you will have to start a new character. This may sound like a lot of work, but with the right strategy (and friends to play with), you can max out your level in a relatively short amount of time. In fact, seasonal play gives older Diablo III players a reason to return every few months – it’s really quite smart.

And that brings us to the next point. Even after all these years, Diablo III is still constantly updated with patches and balance changes. This keeps the game feeling fresh, and previous equipment considered to be weak have a chance to shine once Blizzard rework them. This opens up the possibility of new builds too, which adds to the game’s overall fun factor.

Last but definitely not least is the amount of resources available to Diablo III. Not sure which class will suit your playstyle? Look up for gameplay videos of different classes on YouTube. Don’t know which skill build can dish out the most damage? Google them. Sites like Icy Veins (and even the Diablo subreddit) has a lot of guides to choose from.

In short, it’s not difficult to look for guidance when it comes to Diablo III, and this will benefit newcomers to the game immensely. I personally used the video below – from YouTuber Rhykker – to decide on which class I should start for Season 15.

Diablo III, despite its age, still has a lot to offer in 2018. In fact, it was recently released on the Nintendo Switch, and it has received pretty favourable reviews. There was a lot of commotion with Diablo Immortal, but that isn’t strictly related to this game.

If you haven’t had the chance to play Diablo III, you really should – it’s still relevant today, and it’s a genuinely fun game.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *