Diablo 4 boss reveals why game is ‘best it’s ever been’ with ‘two game’ rule – plus tip for rare Vessel of Hatred mount --[Reported by Umva mag]

DIABLO 4 was one of 2023’s best-loved games – and it’s now the “best it’s ever been” thanks to a massive new upgrade.

That’s according to the hellishly more-ish game’s top boss Rod Fergusson, who spoke to The Sun about Diablo‘s new Vessel of Hatred expansion.

Activision Blizzard

Diablo 4 is getting a major upgrade with the Vessel of Hatred expansion[/caption]

Activision Blizzard

Diablo General Manager Rod Fergusson spoke to The Sun about the new update[/caption]

Vessel of Hatred is out on Tuesday, October 8, and massively expands the existing Diablo 4 role-playing game.

You get a brand new class, loads of fresh content and, perhaps mostly importantly, an enormous area to explore called Nahantu.

“We wanted to bring another region in of the world of Sanctuary,” Rod, Diablo’s General Manager, told The Sun.

“Because most of Diablo 4 takes place on what we call the Eastern Continent.

WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE

“And so there’s still some land at the bottom of that, plus there’s all of the whole Western Continent.

“There’s two sort of inspirations. One was we wanted to have something that was very different.

“When you think of Diablo 4, you think of medieval Gothic, Eastern European kind of sensibilities. And so our art director John Mueller was really interested in saying what could we do from a contrast perspective?

“What could we do that would provide more colour, but also just a variety.

“And so going to this ancient jungle was seen as one of the things we could do.”

NEW SPIRIT

In Vessel of Hatred, you’ll be exploring Nahantu to find Neyrelle, an adventurer who is looking for a way to destroy Mephisto – the prime evil, currently trapped inside a soulstone.

And you’ll be able to go on this journey as a brand new class called Spiritborn.

Rod says that the idea was to do something totally different and against the usual type of Diablo class.

“Everybody has this sort of like: If I was in a fantasy world, I would be a wizard, or I would be a barbarian, or I would be a druid or necromancer. That king of thing,” Rod told The Sun.

“And so the Spiritborn is kind of unique in that way. I don’t think kids are running around the playground going: “I’m gonna be a Spiritborn.”

Activision Blizzard

There’s a new region to explore called Nahantu[/caption]

Activision Blizzard, which makes the Diablo games (as well as World of Warcraft and Overwatch), describes the Spiritborn as the “apex predator” of the Nahantu jungle.

And Rod says the playstyle is very different from what Diablo players are used to.

“What we ended up with is a very adaptable class, which is very fast,” Rod explained.

“It’s like a spiritual monk that has these casting abilities, but also these martial arts abilities.

And then you have the gorilla – it’s probably one of my favourite ultimates. Rod FergussonDiablo General Manager, Blizzard

“And because of those four spirit guardians, you can mix and go deep on one – or you can mix-and-match two at a time.

“And that really lets you make your own class. So that was one of the fun things about it.”

He added: “We wanted to have a class that came from that area because it meant it felt good as a package.

“Like hey, there’s a new region with a new story and this class is from that region. It felt really good.”

Part of the Spiritborn’s playstyle involves using different spirit guardians to your advantage.

There are four that you can make use of, each with different perks.

“There’s the speed of the jaguar that’s sort of fire-based. And the way that it attacks and its ultimate is so cool – when you bring in the spirit guardian of the large jaguar that just eats up everybody in the battlefield,” Rod told us.

“And then you have the gorilla – it’s probably one of my favourite ultimates, because when you cast it, it comes in and just smashes the ground and destroys everything around you.

Activision Blizzard

Spiritborn is the new Diablo 4 class coming in Vessel of Hatred[/caption]

“And the centipede is cool because it comes out and does this beam of poison that sort of dissolves everybody.

“And then the eagle comes in and just electrifies the ground and explodes them.”

DOUBLE TROUBLE

Part of Blizzard’s challenge will be convincing people who haven’t played Diablo 4 (or maybe any Diablo game) to pick it up for the new expansion.

It’s available on Windows PC, Xbox, PlayStation, and via Steam, but that’s not a guarantee that it’ll be widely snapped up.

Rod says Diablo 4’s appeal is that it’s basically two games in one – and that split can appeal to lots of different players.

“Diablo is sort of two games in a way,” the Diablo chief explained.

“There’s the campaign game or the story part of it – some people come in, just play the story, and they have a great time. And that’s what they want to play.

“But there’s this other side of it, which is called the 100-hour game.

Activision Blizzard

You’ll be following Neyrelle, who is in possession of prime evil Mephisto – trapped inside a soulstone[/caption]

“The notion of: I want to play the story and get immersed in the world. But then once I’ve done that, I want to still continue to progress my character.

“I still want to get more and more powerful. I still want to test my strength. I’m gonna optimise it to be even stronger.

“So when you think about that as part of a live service, you’re always trying to add enriching ways to continue that 100-hour game.”

INTO THE DARK

For players that do want to dive into the 100-hour game, there’s a new mode called The Dark Citadel.

It’s the best that Diablo has ever been. Rod FergussonDiablo General Manager, Blizzard

It’s a multiplayer dungeon experience that requires teamwork and – unusually for Diablo – can only be enjoyed in a group.

“The Dark Citadel is meant for really that end-game player. The player that has gotten maybe to max level, which is level 60,” Rod said.

“Once you get there, it’s multiplayer player-against-the-dungeon.

“But you work together as a team of at least two up to four.

“You go through and there’s mechanics that require you to work together. Like: I’m sending you down to kill everything on that floor so I can do this thing up top.

“It’s the first time in Diablo’s 28-year history we’ve done a multiplayer dungeon of that kind.

“So we’re excited to see as people complete the expansion story and get into the end-game and be able to play in The Dark Citadel.”

There’s also the return of Diablo’s classic Mercenaries feature, which might help classic players get back on board.

Activision Blizzard

New end-game content includes The Dark Citadel, a multiplayer-only dungeon experience[/caption]

“Mercenaries is something you first saw in Diablo 2. They became Followers in Diablo 3,” Rod explained.

“We know Mercenaries are popular, and so we wanted to bring Mercenaries back but have a Diablo 4 twist on it.

“So now they come back with their own skill trees. When you work with them, you build rapport so you can trade with them.”

Rod thinks that there’s basically something for everyone – new or old.

And the reviews for the early version of the game have been very positive, with The Sun’s own Diablo 4 review saying that Vessel of Hatred “improves on an already very good base game”.

Rod said: “Right now – because of season six, which is the season that launches with the expansion – it’s the best that Diablo has ever been.

“So if you’ve haven’t played Diablo 4 before, this is a great time to get in there.

“You can play the whole main campaign as the Spiritborn if you want to try the new class with the original story.

“Or you can go jump right into the expansion if you want to.”

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