Diablo 4is gearing up for its biggest season since the game’s launch, looking to significantly overhaul some core aspects of the game to create a better overall experience for players. Titled “Loot Reborn,“Diablo 4Season 4 focuses on honing in on what makes slaying demons and collecting loot fun, while attempting to eliminate some of the tedium that comes with the game’s itemization at higher levels of play. Across all the new features and updated mechanics coming inDiablo 4Season 4, it’s clear that this philosophy has been at the forefront of the developers' minds and the results should lead to a refreshedDiablo 4experience.
Game Rant spoke with lead live class designer Adam Jackson, lead live game designer Colin Finer, and associate game director Joe Piepiora about what players can expect from the upcoming Loot Reborn season ofDiablo 4. The team provided insights on how they revamped gameplay based on player feedback and designed features for bothDiablo 4’s Seasonal and Eternal realms. With all the improvements coming next season, players who’ve held off checking out the game or put it down for a while have a great reason to dive into SanctuarywhenDiablo 4Season 4: Loot Reborn launches May 14.
Diablo 4 Season 4: Loot Reborn Promises to Overhaul the Game’s Itemization
At the core ofDiablo 4’s gameplay loop is its itemization, which encourages players to continuously hunt for new loot and better gear and constantly work toward creating their optimal build. While this gameplay loop drives a lot of the fun ofDiablo 4, it can get tedious when players find endless amounts of useless gear in their quest to find that one perfect piece. When approaching this itemization rework, Finer says:
“One of the main sources of feedback on areas of improvement that the players have sort of called out, as well as us on the development team have sort of experienced, is loot and having a really rewarding experience.Diablo 4is all about awesome loot. We wanted to take a step back and think about how do we make the loot experience have more customization, how do we clean up the experience and streamline things so that players are slaying demons more and parsing their loot less.”
This approach to itemization is evident when looking at thenew features coming inDiablo 4Season 4and their functionality with the game’s existing systems. While it might seem daunting at first glance to see this new itemization breakdown, the new system should create a better experience forDiablo 4players in the long run.
All Changes to Itemization in Diablo 4 Season 4
The first new addition to itemization inDiablo 4Season 4 is the new Tempering system, which allows players toadd new affixes to a piece of gear by visiting the Blacksmith. Along with this feature comes the inclusion of Greater Affixes, which provide players with higher-value versions of normal affixes available exclusively on World Tier 4. The combination of these features should help players customize a piece of gear to fit their specific build while also making affixes on a base piece of gear easier to understand, as Jackson explains:
“You’ll notice one of the big changes in itemization 2.0 was that we made all the base stats very, very simple – the stuff that just drops from loot – very easy to understand, like +Strength, +Crit Chance. Things like that that are very easy for a player to see and go like ‘Oh hey this is what I want’ or ‘This isn’t what I want.’ And then the more complex or interesting or really build-centric stats are all in the Tempering system.”
In addition to shifting the complexity of itemization to the Tempering system,Diablo 4Season 4 is also updating theCodex of Powerto allow players to keep the best version of a Legendary Aspect permanently in their Codex, imprinting it on any weapon they find after obtaining it. Masterworking is another new feature that allows players to further upgrade their affixes after they’ve been imprinted on an item to optimize their build’s potential.
New and Improved Challenges Await Diablo 4 Players in Season 4
The Pit Introduces a New Way for Players to Test Their Builds
Along with the itemization rework coming in Season 4,Diablo 4is also giving players new opportunities to test their builds with the introduction of The Pit. ThisnewDiablo 4dungeonis the perfect way for endgame players to put their build to the test against some of the game’s most powerful monsters.
As Finer notes,
“We have this new dungeon type called The Pit of the Artificer and that’s really going to be able to test your build. We sort of refer to it as a measuring stick for your character, and you’re going to be able to go very, very deep into The Pit. I’ll say it is pretty challenging, we’ve made monsters that are above level 100 pretty tough. We’ve gotten a lot of feedback that the game has become a little bit too easy with the amount of power we’ve injected, and we really think that this Pit is going to surprise players in terms of how far you can really push and how difficult the monsters become.”
Not only will The Pit be great for pushing builds to their limits, but players can also earn unique materials needed for things like summoning stronger versions ofDiablo 4’s Uber Bossesand materials that can be used for Masterworking. The Pit seems like it will be another great endgame activity forDiablo 4players to master.
Helltides Have Also Been Improved in Diablo 4 Season 4
Helltides are going to give players a greater reason to spend time outside of dungeons inDiablo 4Season 4, as the reworked event is set to feature an even higher monster density to give players a more efficient way to level quickly.Helltides will also feature Accursed Rituals, which summon a new mini-boss type known as a Blood Maiden for players to battle. These Helltide changes are not just for the Seasonal Realm, but will also take effect on the Eternal Realm as well.
Diablo 4 Season 4’s Story Will Focus on the Iron Wolves
Sanctuary’s mercenary group known as theIron Wolveswill play a key role in the Loot Reborn Season ofDiablo 4. The Iron Wolves are the main faction players will be working alongside during this season as they complete quests and earn lucrative rewards. As Piepiora puts it,
“Players are going to get an opportunity to learn more about the Iron Wolves and help them in their efforts, and also earn fame and reputation with them as they assist these Iron Wolves. The rewards for going through these quests and helping these Iron Wolves are really dramatic, they’re very, very significant. We’ve thought a lot about the way we’ve introduced rewards in the Season Journey and Reputation System in previous seasons, and we really wanted to ensure that when you do get rewarded – and the Iron Wolves, they’re mercenaries, they’re sellswords, they’re there for a job, and they’re there to get paid – you’re going to get paid when you work with the Iron Wolves.”
These improved quest rewards sound like the icing on the cake of the refresh that is the Loot Reborn season ofDiablo 4. Players looking for a brand-newDiablo 4experience will likely find what they’re looking for whenDiablo 4Season 4 drops.
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Diablo® IV is the ultimate action RPG experience with endless evil to slaughter, countless abilities to master, nightmarish dungeons, and legendary loot. Embark on the campaign solo or with friends, meeting memorable characters through beautifully dark settings and a gripping story, or explore an expansive end game and shared world where players can meet in towns to trade, team up to battle world bosses, or descend into PVP zones to test their skills against other players – no lobbies necessary – with cross-play, cross-progression, and couch co-op on Xbox.This is only the beginning for Diablo® IV, with new events, stories, seasons, rewards, and more looming on the horizon.
