Everything you need to know about Blizzard's Diablo IV beta

[Cal Jeffrey]

Highly anticipated: If you can't wait to get your hands on Diablo 4, the betas are only a few weekends away. Blizzard has scheduled two testing periods in March for players to get in some hacking and slashing. Of course, you won't get access to the full game, but Bliz outlined what to expect.

Diablo 4's first beta weekend is March 17-19. This test is considered "early access," so is only open to those who pre-ordered the game. The second period is the weekend of March 24-26. This beta is open to everyone, including pre-orders. So it serves also as a small perk for those with faith in Blizzard delivering a good game. They get a bit more time in a limited but ample region of Sanctuary.

The area of Sanctuary that will be open to beta testers is the rough terrain of Fractured Peaks. This region lies far to the east, near the Dry Steppes. It is northeast of the Caldeum map in D3. According to the lore, the mountainous area's residents dare not venture out at night due to the cold and heavy demonic activity.

The bad news is beta players will be limited to only the Fractured Peaks map. The good news is that's where the Prologue and Act I take place, and players are welcome to complete both of these story modes if they have enough time over a weekend.

Bliz has limited Early Access players to only three of the five classes — Barbarian, Rogue, and Sorcerer. However, the following weekend, when the open beta begins, devs will unlock the Druid and Necromancer for all to play. Players can use each character as much as they like but will be limited to level 25. After level capping, you can still romp through the map but will not gain experience.

Blizzard suggests making a new character (up to 10) after capping to find your favorite because beta characters do not carry over to the finished game. Early Access players can transfer their builds to the open beta. However, everybody has to start Diablo IV fresh at launch, which is fair since it has the obligatory multiplayer element.

Like D3 and Diablo II: Resurrected, D4 retains its multiple-player co-op mode. Both couch co-op and online modes are available in the beta with a few stipulations.

When setting up a couch co-op session during the Early Access weekend, only one player has to have pre-ordered the game. Your partner only has to have a Battle.net profile. All users must link to a valid BN account if playing on consoles.

For online four-player co-op action, everybody in the party has to have access to the beta, meaning that only pre-order gamers can participate in the earlier testing period with one exception. Those who have started a couch co-op session can join four-player parties with room for two, regardless of whether the fourth wheel has early access.

Boons come to those that fight together. Blizzard will have a giant "world boss" wandering around at "select times" during the betas, where all parties can band together to defeat this mighty beast. If you kill a foe while nearby another player, you get a five-percent experience bonus. The boon jumps up to 10 percent when near a member of your party.

While you can't carry your characters over to the full game, you can earn a few rewards during the trials that transfer to Diablo IV via your Battle.net account. The first is the Initial Casualty character title that you can win by getting to Kyovashad with at least one of your characters. The Early Voyager title and the Beta Wolf Pack cosmetic item comes to those reaching at least level 20 with any of their builds.

For PC players, you should be sure your specs are up to par.

Settings to run the Diablo IV Open Beta at 1080p native resolution / 720p render resolution, low graphics settings, 30 fps:

• Operating System: 64-bit Windows 10
• Processor: Intel Core i5-2500K or AMD FX-8100
• Memory: 8 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660 or AMD Radeon R9 280
• DirectX: Version 12
• Storage: SSD with 45 GB available space
• Internet: Broadband Connection

Recommended Specifications for PC:

• Operating System: 64-bit Windows 10
• Processor: Intel Core i5-4670K or AMD R3-1300X
• Memory: 16 GB RAM
• Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 or AMD Radeon RX 470
• DirectX: Version 12
• Storage: SSD with 45 GB available space
• Internet: Broadband Connection

Of course, console players can just play without worry.

Beta Wolf Pack cosmetic item

Once again, the Diablo IV beta periods are March 17-19 and 24-26. Watch your PlayStation, Xbox, and Battle.net storefronts for live download links during those dates. The full game launches on June 6, with an Early Access period starting on June 2 for those who pre-ordered the Ultimate or Digital Deluxe versions.

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https://www.techspot.com/news/97782-everything-you-need-know-about-blizzards-diablo-iv.html

 

[brucek]

Diablo 3 was a great purchase for me. I paid full price for it and its expansion, but have been enjoying the game on and off for ten years. The seasons format makes for great bits of fun - you can go back for a week or two, experience a fast-paced sense of progression, "win" the season, then put it down again for a while. All while never feeling nickel & dimed for DLC. Excellent fun per dollar ratio.

Then came Diablo Immortal, which fortunately I never touched, but from all accounts sounds like a nightmare of good basic game married to horrible monetization.

So by far the most important thing I want to understand about Diablo 4, before I even consider learning more about it, is which of these two models is it going to be closer to?

I suspect I'm going to end up sticking with D3 / Path of Exile / Grim Dawn.

 

[Shaitan]

Diablo 3 was a great purchase for me. I paid full price for it and its expansion, but have been enjoying the game on and off for ten years. The seasons format makes for great bits of fun - you can go back for a week or two, experience a fast-paced sense of progression, "win" the season, then put it down again for a while. All while never feeling nickel & dimed for DLC. Excellent fun per dollar ratio.

Then came Diablo Immortal, which fortunately I never touched, but from all accounts sounds like a nightmare of good basic game married to horrible monetization.

So by far the most important thing I want to understand about Diablo 4, before I even consider learning more about it, is which of these two models is it going to be closer to?

I suspect I'm going to end up sticking with D3 / Path of Exile / Grim Dawn.

Refunded both Warcraft III Reforged and Diablo II Resurrected. Not touching anything Blizzard makes nowadays, not even with a 10-feet pole. The ONLY game Blizzard could have swayed me into buying was a Starcaft-based shooter. But since those can't be monetized to hell and back, it's out of the question, right?
Well... I keep my money in my pocket, they keep their game unsold.
I'm really glad if it turns out it's a great game and it has cosmetic-only paid items. It is possible that I'm wrong when I'm assuming that:
1. Blizzard are greedy f__cks and
2. They will DEFINITELY turn the game into a Diablo-Immortal-cash-cow-but-with-prettier-graphics.
But despite the publicity and the sheep buying in droves, I've not paid either COD or OverWatch I (or the second one, dunno if it's paid or free, I don't care). Anything made by Activision or Ubisoft is a no-go, anything with cosmetics or "always online" is definitely off the table.
The ONLY message these companies understand is money. The only language they understand is profit. They don't care about the employees, decent conditions, good wages or your health, despite the HR bullshit.
The ONLY way to turn things around is to NOT pay for their products.
Except for CD Projekt Red, which doesn't have paid items, in their games, I'm not EVER going to pre-order anything ever again. Elden Ring? Yes, no cosmetic items, bring it on.
I will die on this hill. I'd rather quit gaming than pay a dime for a PAID single-player always-online which asks for $$$ for skins, cosmetic or otherwise.
Free-to-play? Ok, you need to make a living, obviously. If not: EFF OFF.

 

[DukeJukem]

Refunded both Warcraft III Reforged and Diablo II Resurrected. Not touching anything Blizzard makes nowadays, not even with a 10-feet pole. The ONLY game Blizzard could have swayed me into buying was a Starcaft-based shooter. But since those can't be monetized to hell and back, it's out of the question, right?
Well... I keep my money in my pocket, they keep their game unsold.
I'm really glad if it turns out it's a great game and it has cosmetic-only paid items. It is possible that I'm wrong when I'm assuming that:
1. Blizzard are greedy f__cks and
2. They will DEFINITELY turn the game into a Diablo-Immortal-cash-cow-but-with-prettier-graphics.
But despite the publicity and the sheep buying in droves, I've not paid either COD or OverWatch I (or the second one, dunno if it's paid or free, I don't care). Anything made by Activision or Ubisoft is a no-go, anything with cosmetics or "always online" is definitely off the table.
The ONLY message these companies understand is money. The only language they understand is profit. They don't care about the employees, decent conditions, good wages or your health, despite the HR bullshit.
The ONLY way to turn things around is to NOT pay for their products.
Except for CD Projekt Red, which doesn't have paid items, in their games, I'm not EVER going to pre-order anything ever again. Elden Ring? Yes, no cosmetic items, bring it on.
I will die on this hill. I'd rather quit gaming than pay a dime for a PAID single-player always-online which asks for $$$ for skins, cosmetic or otherwise.
Free-to-play? Ok, you need to make a living, obviously. If not: EFF OFF.

I feel ya...but unfortunately that's not the way the world is going and it's never going to change because of how ignorant the younger audience is these days and companies will continue to feed and profit from the greed.

 

[Ohnooze]

Looking forward to this one but I'll pass on the beta. I want it t be brand new when I get to it.

 

[Nobina]

They will sure not mess this one up, surely!

 

[Darth Shiv]

Diablo 3 was a great purchase for me. I paid full price for it and its expansion, but have been enjoying the game on and off for ten years. The seasons format makes for great bits of fun - you can go back for a week or two, experience a fast-paced sense of progression, "win" the season, then put it down again for a while. All while never feeling nickel & dimed for DLC. Excellent fun per dollar ratio.

Then came Diablo Immortal, which fortunately I never touched, but from all accounts sounds like a nightmare of good basic game married to horrible monetization.

So by far the most important thing I want to understand about Diablo 4, before I even consider learning more about it, is which of these two models is it going to be closer to?

I suspect I'm going to end up sticking with D3 / Path of Exile / Grim Dawn.

I think the exponential power creep was terrible for the game. It made a huge disparity in power levels in a party. You'd invariably have someone 100-1000 times more powerful than the rest and carry for 80% of a season. It wasn't coop. And they rendered 99% of items completely worthless every season in a game about hoarding. Goes against the entire spirit of the series.

 

[Watzupken]

Diablo 3 was a great purchase for me. I paid full price for it and its expansion, but have been enjoying the game on and off for ten years. The seasons format makes for great bits of fun - you can go back for a week or two, experience a fast-paced sense of progression, "win" the season, then put it down again for a while. All while never feeling nickel & dimed for DLC. Excellent fun per dollar ratio.

Then came Diablo Immortal, which fortunately I never touched, but from all accounts sounds like a nightmare of good basic game married to horrible monetization.

So by far the most important thing I want to understand about Diablo 4, before I even consider learning more about it, is which of these two models is it going to be closer to?

I suspect I'm going to end up sticking with D3 / Path of Exile / Grim Dawn.

To me, D3 made me realized that I won't be buying anything from the series going forward. The game is fun, but there were a number of annoyance for me which are really show stoppers,
1. Always online and reliance on their server uptime to play. Some days you just want to start a quick game, only to realize it is server maintenance or down time. So too bad. Have to wait or try again another day. To me, I buy a game expecting that I can play it anytime I want. But I have to depend on Activision Blizzard's server maintenence schedule now.

2. Seasons - I think the introduction of the "Seasons" is both interesting and at the same time disrupting. A new season means some sets get a bump in specs and allows a different play style. But that also means, if you have not been playing the game for some time and want to get back in it, you basically have to start the grind again because the gears on your old characters will limit your progress in higher difficulties. It also somewhat forces players to take on the character of the season, and very little difference in play style. So to me, it is very limiting.

3. Limited character and storage slots. When you force players to keep creating new characters because of the Seasons, they should expect people to have a lot of characters over the years. But strangely, the number of characters and storage is limited. This is probably due to the fact that the data is stored on their server, but again, this is an issue they created in the first place. I am playing Titan Quest and never ran into an issue where I ran out of character slots, and I don't have the need to create this many characters because I am not forced to start a new character each time with some new "Season".

I foresee the same issues with D4, given that the re-hashed D2 seems to operate on the same model. And so I won't be interested in it now.

 

[dualkelly]

To me, D3 made me realized that I won't be buying anything from the series going forward. The game is fun, but there were a number of annoyance for me which are really show stoppers,
1. Always online and reliance on their server uptime to play. Some days you just want to start a quick game, only to realize it is server maintenance or down time. So too bad. Have to wait or try again another day. To me, I buy a game expecting that I can play it anytime I want. But I have to depend on Activision Blizzard's server maintenence schedule now.

2. Seasons - I think the introduction of the "Seasons" is both interesting and at the same time disrupting. A new season means some sets get a bump in specs and allows a different play style. But that also means, if you have not been playing the game for some time and want to get back in it, you basically have to start the grind again because the gears on your old characters will limit your progress in higher difficulties. It also somewhat forces players to take on the character of the season, and very little difference in play style. So to me, it is very limiting.

3. Limited character and storage slots. When you force players to keep creating new characters because of the Seasons, they should expect people to have a lot of characters over the years. But strangely, the number of characters and storage is limited. This is probably due to the fact that the data is stored on their server, but again, this is an issue they created in the first place. I am playing Titan Quest and never ran into an issue where I ran out of character slots, and I don't have the need to create this many characters because I am not forced to start a new character each time with some new "Season".

I foresee the same issues with D4, given that the re-hashed D2 seems to operate on the same model. And so I won't be interested in it now.

This just really means D3 was a wow clone in many ways. I personally could not stand the cartoonish looking graphics its suppose to be hell and gothic looking not some furry fantasy.

 

[Neatfeatguy]

Online requirement for D3 is what kept me away from it. No thank you.

I wasn't a fan of playing Diablo or Diablo 2 online with others through Battlenet, but I did enjoy playing the games offline on my computer whenever I wanted to without having to connect online.

They can keep their trash.

 

[Ohnooze]

Without a chart of different resolutions these kinds of recommended specs don't tell much.