With Diablo 4 hitting Xbox Game Pass, the latest entry in Blizzard Entertainment’s legendary action-RPG franchise is now widely available to much more players, even bringing some newcomers to the fold. The series has a long history in gaming, going as far back as the 90s. Today we’re taking a look back at why Diablo 3, arguably the black sheep of the franchise, is absolutely still worth playing in 2024.
Firstly, let’s get some of Diablo 3‘s biggest negatives out of the way before we dive into its list of positives. The game’s art style is quite divisive among the community. Instead of the signature darker, gothic aesthetic of the first two games, Diablo 3 opted to use a more cartoonish style reminiscent of World of Warcraft for its character models and environments. The result is a much brighter game that’s less menacing and more upbeat in its presentation.
If you’re coming from Diablo 4 especially, this change in art style will immediately be noticeable and we can’t say for certain how many will actually take a liking to it. Diablo 3 also features some examples of terrible dialogue and voice acting that hasn’t aged well at all since 2012. It’s cheesy and melodramatic but some argue that it’s simply part of Diablo 3‘s charm. We’re kind of in the middle on that, though you get used to it pretty quickly.
Beyond that, Diablo 3 still holds up fantastically today, particularly in how it streamlines the franchise’s core gameplay while removing some of the more annoying aspects of its predecessors. If you’re going for the Diablo 3 Eternal Collection in 2024 (which you really should), then you will have access to all DLC and seven classes: Wizard, Barbarian, Demon Hunter, Crusader, Monk, Witch Doctor and Necromancer. You can pick up the collection for quite a low price during sales these days, so that’s a plus.
Blizzard leaned heavily into power fantasy for Diablo 3. Each class is perfectly viable and extraordinarily powerful to use, especially at higher levels. While you might’ve been fighting for your life against mobs of dangerous foes in the first two games, in Diablo 3, you’re mowing down enemies in quick succession with devastating AoE attacks, melting health bars as you bounce around the area. Even after hundreds of hours, the fun factor of the gameplay never lets up which is honestly impressive.
Needless to say, if power fantasy RPG’s aren’t for you, then you might not like what Diablo 3 has to offer. Once you reach higher levels and unlock more powerful abilities and skills, you can essentially steamroll most the game. Some key boss fights will still pose a decent challenge (especially on higher difficulties) but for the most part, you’re a force of nature against fodder practically begging to be slaughtered for experience points. That loop is incredibly addictive and Blizzard absolutely nails it.
What would a Diablo game be without the loot? Thankfully, Diablo 3 still delivers fantastic loot in droves. It’s easy to pick up after slaying enemies and even easier to manage. Items and gear that you don’t need can be sold off for extra cash to spend on things that blacksmiths or vendors can sell specific to your class, though the game does a good job of dropping the appropriate loot depending on your chosen class. Dropping in and out of co-op is also a breeze, regardless of what platforms you play on, and seamlessly enjoyable.
There’s just enough variety in the seven total classes to keep things fresh for a few playthroughs. Each class performs differently in battle and depending on your preference, you can deal great consistent damage with almost any application of class abilities. Demon Hunters are my personal favourite for unleashing whirlwinds of bolts as you spin around the environment like Crash Bandicoot while keeping enemies at a distance, though you can literally shake things up with the quaking power of a Barbarian (yes, they’re far more powerful in Diablo 3 than Diablo 4).
Crusader is the spiritual successor to the Paladin class and pretty much plays the same, dealing high holy damage which comes in handy against hordes of evil demons. Necromancer gets the popular vote with players and it’s easy to see why: you can hang back and let your summoned minions do a lot of the dirty work for you. Witch Doctor is arguably one of the stranger classes in the game, but like I said before, all classes are viable, well-balanced and very powerful when levelled up.
Blizzard refined a lot of features in Diablo 3 that were annoying in past games. For example, it got rid of Diablo 2‘s weird Tetris-like inventory management in favour of a much more streamlined system to keep track of your acquired items. Combat feels a lot smoother in general too. It’s less clunky, controls well and maintains a surprisingly fast pace.
While the dialogue and voice acting isn’t up to scratch, the story definitely has some high points, especially in the fourth act and the excellent Reaper of Souls expansion, which attempts to recapture the gothic, darker tone of the first two games – and it mostly succeeds. Cutscenes and cinematics are gorgeous too, as expected from Blizzard.
Diablo 4 might’ve found a nice middle-ground between Diablo 2‘s gothic presentation and Diablo 3‘s power fantasy gameplay, though you really shouldn’t discredit Diablo 3 in 2024. Blizzard put in a lot of work over the years with dozens of updates to bring the game up to scratch after its rocky launch. If you feel like Blizzard hasn’t done enough post-launch work on Diablo 4 yet, we strongly recommend picking up Diablo 3, whether you’re a veteran or a newcomer.
