Sometimes a doorway will open into a cellar full of skeletal swordsmen and archers, ready to ambush the unwary, while the centre houses an imposing stronghold where it’s a challenge just getting to its fearsome boss. The opening section showcased in the beta is a vast landscape of muddy forest valleys, icy crags and frozen wastes, studded with dungeons and ruins to explore and monsters to dispatch. If Diablo’s roots lie in classic Dungeons and Dragons, you can see its influence everywhere from Destiny 2 to Elden Ring. No other series has honed this vicious cycle into something as devilishly addictive or absorbing that’s so much fun to share with friends in co-op play.

The more you slay, the more powerful the skills and gear you get to slay them with, and the more spectacular the mayhem becomes.

Most of all, though, it lies in its gameplay loop, where you wade through dungeon after dungeon, slaying demons and the undead by the dozen. The secret of the series’ success has always been its demonic dark fantasy aesthetic, its multiplayer-friendly action and the lengths its developer, Blizzard, goes to in keeping players engaged. Fans don’t just blast through a Diablo and move on they can’t resist coming back for more. It says much that Diablo III is still being played over 10 years on from its original release, while a remaster of the ancient Diablo II sold millions of copies on its launch last year. New Diablo isn’t so much another sequel as a milestone in the development of one of gaming’s all-time greats. New West End Company BRANDPOST | PAID CONTENT.

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