When “Diablo 3” came out, one of the common sentiments among fans was that the game failed to meet the expectations of old-school fans of the series, and was too simplified in an obvious bid to attract a wider audience. And while it’s true that the gameplay of the new “Diablo” was somewhat more straightforward than what was found in “Diablo 2” and its expansion, the game also brought various improvements to the table, many of which sadly went unnoticed in the general swarm of criticism.
And now, it seems that Blizzard have learned their lesson with the slightly unsuccessful release of “Diablo 3”, and want to earn back the trust of their fans for the game’s expansion. While there have been no official news about the future of the game lately, and Blizzard have confirmed that they won’t be coming out with any new information at BlizzCon 2014, there have been plenty of rumors to fill the void in fans’ hearts. Some of them definitely sound plausible, while others seem like a bit of a stretch. Meanwhile, fans have been enjoying the expansion and its improvements.
One of the things that “Reaper of Souls” addresses successfully is the loot system of the original game. While “Diablo 2” was extremely fun in this regard, and managed to keep millions of players glued to their monitors for months at a time chasing the perfect drop, “Diablo 3” was criticized for making loot more difficult to obtain and making the game a more grinding experience. At the same time, the addition of a real-money auction house made players skeptical of Blizzard’s intentions, with many claiming that the company is starting to desperately monetize every aspect of the game, and joking that “Diablo” has become worse than a freemium mobile game.
The Paragon levels were also criticized for not being very well thought-out, despite trying to deliver something new to the overall experience. Blizzard have taken steps to address that with “Reaper of Souls” as well, giving players a lot more to do at the later stages of the game. The lack of proper end-game content has been pointed out by fans on a regular basis.
Much like “Lord of Destruction” fixed the issues with “Diablo 2” and brought out the true potential that was hiding in the game, “Reaper of Souls” has done a lot to refine the ideas that Blizzard laid down in “Diablo 3”, and has brought the game to a significantly better, more polished state. It’s actually a fun, exciting experience right now, and even though it’s still not 100% perfect, it’s definitely a good indicator for what fans could expect from the future of the series, whenever Blizzard decide to continue it.