Diablo III Reaper of Souls Review: Blizzard Makes Things Right

Diablo III Reaper of Souls Review: Blizzard Makes Things Right

 

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The new expansion is proof that Blizzard listens to its players

While Diablo III was one of the most anticipated games when it came out back in 2012, and while it managed to stay true to the franchise, it had a lot of glaring issues that irked many longtime players. One of the most pressing issues was that once most players hit level 60, the game’s level cap, there wasn’t really anything to keep you engaged in the game, aside from just going back and beating it again on higher difficulty levels. It took Blizzard awhile, but the company finally managed to completely overhaul the game to the point where many longtime fans are finally happy with it. We were finally able to spend some quality time with the new expansion during the long Lenten break, and we’re going to give you the lowdown on what Blizzard has changed in the game.

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One of the most important revamps in the game is Loot 2.0. While not exactly part of the expansion, the patch hit right before the release and is an integral part of how Blizzard managed to completely turn Diablo 3 around. One of the most important changes was the complete shuttering of the auction house, which recentered the focus of the game to the search for truly epic loot, and not outbidding people using game and real-world currency. Legendary item drops and set items are now account-bound, though you can trade legendaries and set items with players who were in your game when you found them.

With Loot 2.0, you no longer have to slog through dungeons, praying that the next legendary item you get will actually be of use to you. The new Smart Drop system makes sure that most of the items that you will discover will be specially tailored to your class (although you will now get less items compared pre-Loot 2.0). This means less trips to town selling off useless stuff, and more time in dungeons actually killing bad guys (and hopefully getting awesome drops).

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The difficulty system has been revamped as well, replaced by a new dynamic difficulty system, divided into subcategories: Normal, Hard, Expert, Master and Torment.

Blizzard has also added a new NPC character, the mystic, which allows you to change up some of your weapons’ skills and change the appearance of an item, which gives you more freedom to customize your characters’ look and playing style.

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As for the expansion, it adds a whole new act and gives players access to a new character: the Crusader. The Crusader is basically a tank character similar to the Barbarian, but puts emphasis on mob control and has toughness bonuses, a handy character to have when you and your friends go raiding.

The new Act allows you to visit several new and old locales from the previous Diablo games, kill new beasties and raises the level cap to 70 from 60. It took us around 4 1/2 hours of playing to raise our character from level 60 to 70, which is the new level cap.

Another great feature for the game is the adventure mode. Unlocked once you finish act five, the adventure mode allows you to revisit every location in the entire game without having to worry about the story. Instead, you’re given random side missions dubbed bounties that give you greater and greater rewards as you move forward. Complete enough of them, and you’ll earn items that grant you passage to the Nephalem Rift, randomly generated dungeons with critters pulled from every corner of Sanctuary. Adventure mode finally gives high level players the endgame that they’ve been looking for since the release of the game.

Blizzard has managed to address many of the criticisms leveled against Diablo 3 when it originally launched two years ago. The game is now a completely different beast than the one that launched back in 2012, and it’s for the better. With the new expansion and the improvements that Blizzard made with the core Diablo III experience, the game can now take its rightful place beside the two previous iterations of the franchise. If you haven’t played Diablo III pre-Loot 2.0 patch, now is the time to get back to killing.

 

 

 

 

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