Diablo IV Interviews Roundup

Diablo IV Posted 2022/12/22 at 3:16 PM by Arktane

Game Support

While the game has been developed with current-gen consoles in mind, Diablo IV will also be optimized for older platforms such as Playstation 4 and Xbox One.

There is no Offline Mode for Diablo IV.

There is a log-in queue system being tested to prevent server issues at launch.

There is no region locking. All players from around the world can play together on all platforms.

Like all other multiplayer Diablo titles, Diablo IV will have expansions. The game will also receive free seasonal content every 3 months with an optional Season Pass for cosmetics.

The seasonal content will be experienced immediately or early on in gameplay instead of nearly only at max level and beyond.

Diablo IV's in-game shop will be cosmetic-only and feature no sources of character power.

Compared to Diablo III, Seasons in Diablo IV will "have much more to them".

There will be new classes in future content cycles.

There are no plans to include cross-franchise content in Diablo IV because the developers want to keep the dark fantasy of the game intact after launch.

At launch, there will be no Armory-type website. However, the development team wants to implement an Army post-launch.

General Information and Systems in Diablo IV

The main design philosophy is Diablo IV's 'return to darkness'. With a brand-new graphics engine, Diablo IV uses exclusive assets and models not seen in other Diablo titles before to transport this special look and feel.

Quest design and writing is a focus. The story will sometimes focus more on grounded plot points involving ordinary people.

Diablo IV's campaign will take between 35 and 45 hours to complete. Everything isn't thrown at you at once, narrative elements and gameplay build in depth over time.

The campaign is non-linear which allows a great deal of freedom to how players approach the game.

Players in a group will receive a very minor experience gain bonus.

Large numbers of players will only show up while in towns or during World Boss Events. During the campaign and particular quest stages, players will only see members of their party.

Major towns will function as Diablo IV's player lobby.

The Renown system carries over unlocks to other characters.

There are emotes that players can use to express themselves or communicate.

Multiple developers have stated that "There is no Cow Level" in Diablo IV. That being said, this statement has been a Blizzard meme for years now.

Leveling, Stats, and Character Building in Diablo IV

Respecs will be very affordable up to roughly level 40. It will become more expensive to respec as you gain more levels.

The Paragon Board will be a method of altering your stats.

In Diablo IV, roughly 150 to 180 hours are required to reach level 100 based on individual gameplay.

Players can test skills using +Skill items before potentially spending points on them.

Blizzard wants Diablo IV's long-term character customization to be important and to have choices that matter.

Items and Itemization in Diablo IV

You can gain many Legendary item effects via the Codex of Power from completing dungeons, but they will be weaker in power than if the legendary item had dropped normally.

Some Legendary effects cannot be acquired through the Codex of Power.

You imprint an "Aspect" you gain from a dungeon onto a rare quality item to turn it into a legendary item with the Aspect's effect.

Legendary effects have a range of effectiveness.

You can extract a Legendary power from an item and put it on an item in a different gear slot.

There will be added support to assist with trading while playing with a controller.

PVP rewards in Diablo IV are cosmetic only.

Combat and Gameplay in Diablo IV

There are no Nephalem Rifts but more than enough other end-game activities available in Diablo IV.

There is something similar to Diablo III's Bounties called "Whispers" in Diablo IV in which you complete tasks in the world for rewards.

There are encampments of enemies all over the world called "Strongholds" that players can defeat to turn the location into a friendly settlement.

There will be difficult and challenging content during the leveling process.

Diablo IV's development team is currently focused on PVE balancing but will address PVP balancing as needed after launch.

Designing different dungeon objective types has been a top priority for the developers to keep gameplay non-repetitive.

Specific characters will help players throughout the story, but there is no confirmation of mercenaries or hirelings coming to Diablo IV.

All classes in Diablo IV have the "Evade" skill, allowing players to avoid dangerous attacks. There will be items that modify the Evade skill.

Health Potions use charges which replenish from damaging or killing monsters.

Monster level scales for each player in the party except in areas with "level floors" which are a minimum level the area can scale to.

Skills in Diablo IV are more complex than in any other Diablo game.

All players will need to complete the story once to gain access to a campaign skip option for future characters.

Gameplay will have moments of relative calmness to give breathing room.

Dungeons and Strongholds will be fast and action-packed. Nightmare Dungeons will be rather difficult.

There is a mix of classic skills and entirely new skills.

Each class in Diablo IV will have a unique class mechanic that can let you fine-tune the archetype you play as.

Diablo IV will, in fact, feature Treasure Goblins!

Players can climb, jump, and slide at times to gain access to other areas.

There will be at least 120 unique dungeons in Diablo IV. All dungeons are tooled for replayability and a unique experience each time.

Players unlock additional difficulty levels by completing a prerequisite dungeon at the previous difficulty level. They can also change Diablo IV's difficulty settings at statues in the game or in the main menu

Links to Sources and InterviewsDiablo IV Dev Update - Helltides, Nightmare Dungeons, Whispers of the Dead and Fields of HatredDiablo IV Quarterly Update August 2022 - Seasons, Battlepass, Cash Shop and CosmeticsDiablo IV Quarterly Update December 2021 - Itemization, Legendary and Unique Items, and Visual EffectsWowhead Interview 1Wowhead interview 2Eurogamer InterviewPolygon InterviewPress Start InterviewDestructoid InterviewMaxroll InterviewIGN Interview

Comment by djuliooSince there are no actual lobbies, have the devs said anything about how we are going to "reset" the game? T be able to kill the same boss again, for example, or even just redo a dungeon.Comment by glowpipe"There is a log-in queue system being tested to prevent server issues at launch."

Sitting in a queue not being able to play IS server issues at launch. We don't want to sit and waitComment by glowpipeSince there are no actual lobbies, have the devs said anything about how we are going to "reset" the game? T be able to kill the same boss again, for example, or even just redo a dungeon.Comment by mewhywhyThis all read so good, kinda disappointed about the no rifts, i love chasing leaderboard ranking on rifts.Comment by hobbidaggyHopefully the gameplay isn’t like immortal where there are heaps of players around. I always liked the solitary hero style of the gameComment by Chiddie"There is a log-in queue system being tested to prevent server issues at launch."

Sitting in a queue not being able to play IS server issues at launch. We don't want to sit and waitComment by IllanyssHopefully the gameplay isn’t like immortal where there are heaps of players around. I always liked the solitary hero style of the gameComment by CinereousStyxMy guess is 2 different ways. Dungeons that you can reset and enter again and spawn timers out in the world like rares/named mobs in wowComment by keratheenSince there are no actual lobbies, have the devs said anything about how we are going to "reset" the game? T be able to kill the same boss again, for example, or even just redo a dungeon.Comment by HoneybadgernI need to stop reading up on this game. It's getting me so hyped I can't even stand it! I can't wait for D4 to launch!Comment by HoneybadgernThis all read so good, kinda disappointed about the no rifts, i love chasing leaderboard ranking on rifts.Comment by SilverDragon234"There is a log-in queue system being tested to prevent server issues at launch."

Sitting in a queue not being able to play IS server issues at launch. We don't want to sit and waitComment by SilverDragon234Let's hope they add the paladin or even a vindicator in May 2023.Comment by SilverDragon234Let's hope they add the paladin or even a vindicator in May 2023.