Diablo IV: Lord of Hatred Review - A Game Made Whole at Last

Blizzard has finally hit the sweet spot with their action RPG Diablo IV with their latest expansion, Lord of Hatred. With a fantastic campaign that concludes the base game’s narrative, we are left with an experience that has finally peaked in a way that many didn’t think was possible years after release. That the gameplay is more accessible and simply fun to engage with is only the beginning, as Lord of Hatred used all of the franchise’s best tricks to deliver an excellent endgame loop.

For the campaign, Blizzard continues their captivating narrative that sees you killing waves of demons with one swing. I took my time with my return to Diablo IV by revisiting the game’s story from the very beginning with the Warlock class, which was introduced in this new expansion. My full thoughts on experiencing all three campaigns in one go can be found here, but simply put, experiencing the full story in one weekend made the Lord of Hatred campaign hit harder. 

Characters had more weight, as the presence of Lorath and other key characters towards the second half of this 8-11 hour campaign pushed me forward. A Prime Evil is roaming free around Sanctuary once again and has taken a powerful vessel named Akarat, a once deceased prophet of the church now risen from the dead and giving false hope to those who cling to his resurrection. 

Mephisto showing his true strength

This setting is a fantastic setup to showcase Mephisto’s true strength and specialty, as he continues to manipulate and twist minds to get an upper hand. You see this early on and it remains consistent throughout, and it’s done so well that facing him at the end of the campaign hits the right notes for that feeling once the hero beats a great evil. Cliche as it sounds, a simple conclusion like that has become refreshing at a time when game narratives and other forms of storytelling push themselves to go for more complex routes. Here, you’re racing to the islands of Skovos to stop an evil from permanently ruining whatever is left from this broken and tired world.

The game’s cinematics are a true highlight as Blizzard remains consistent at delivering high levels of detail. It’s extremely rare to find disappointment in Blizzard cutscenes, as they are truly the masters of bringing their creations to life in the best way possible. Towards the end of the campaign, I was left looking back at the series’ deep lore and realized how interesting fleshed out the eternal conflict between heaven and hell has become in this world, and I'm interested once again in what Blizzard has planned for the series, as for a game that’s called Diablo IV, the Prime Evil Diablo himself remains absent and only mentioned in passing in side quests.

It’s not a perfect experience, as Lord of Hatred didn’t have a more interesting series of activities to pair with the narrative. The active storytelling still sees you holding off hordes of enemies or going here to fetch this or that, nothing too exciting or unique, so I wouldn't be surprised if some players find it a bit slow, especially for those that are in it just for the endgame.

These activities feel like they stretch the overall length of the campaign, which is a problem that has always been present in the base game, as it feels like forced exposition at times. It’s worse in Vessel of Hatred and during the later part of the base game. Lord of Hatred isn’t immune to this.

A More Vibrant Sanctuary 

The new location of Skovos was also a treat. Vessel of Hatred went for a more forest-heavy setting due to its location, resulting in most of in the first expansion looking rather the same each time I played those areas. But in Lord of Hatred, Blizzard delivered more striking backdrops. From tropical Mediterranean islands, mountains filled with lava, and even cities and war-torn areas, as this is home to a conflict between Amazons and aquatic monstrosities. It’s brighter and more vibrant compared to the darker and more eerie nature found in Vessel of Hatred.

The music used for this expansion tried to weigh down the brighter setting of Skovos, as it retains the eerie nature of the whole series. The tone is mellow and gives the impression that the world is at the brink of total collapse, expressing how the weight of Mephisto’s presence has affected the areas he visits, and that this is a world that’s miserable to live in. 

Killing demons with demons

I can’t attest to how the game feels for a player jumping straight into the expansion content, since I started from the beginning, so that resulted in my starting Lord of Hatred with a level 70 character, the new level cap for the game. Players can jump right into the new content with a level 1 character, so experiences can vary, but the many difficult levels and enemy scaling helped me find some difficulty and enjoyment as I went through each encounter. 

From afar, it can seem to be as simple as doing skills and watching things blow up, but as I leveled up my Warlock, I slowly came to see the complexity and depth of the game’s skill trees and itemization. I was constantly changing builds based on the items I found, seeing what to focus on and what to give up. I felt this sense of evolution as I got into the terms of the unique terminology that only Warlock players would understand. I was enjoying things that dropped when a boss died, and I was enjoying the growth seen in my character. This is something I even think was lost in Diablo III, as levels mean unlocking different versions of your skills, not necessarily going through a skill tree and progressing. It’s a reminder that I was grateful they went back to the traditional skill trees for the fourth game.

Endgame feels like a separate game

As many have put it, the campaign acts more like a tutorial, as the endgame is the real gameplay loop, and I have to agree as the hunt for the best possible gear combinations has expanded to a deeper and more satisfying level. Despite spending close to 100 hours with the game and the new content added in Lord of Hatred, I still can’t get enough of it. And this is just on my Warlock, now on Paragon 225. I can practically clear Torment 12 difficulty content with reasonable time clears. 

I still have the urge to experience the endgame in the other classes, and I have not even touched the Paladin, the other new class that came with the expansion.

And this is all thanks to Blizzard throwing everything at the endgame experience. This expansion adds a Talisman system that brings back set bonuses to the game and the famed Horadric Cube, a system that allows players to modify and create items. They then add Warplans, a system that serves as a fitting way to reward players to pursue different endgame activities in a given order.

Repetition feels more tamed with Warplans, as i’m rotating through different activities as I jump to clearing a Pit run (which has tiers of up to 150), then teleporting to summon one of the many bosses, to dungeon instances with unique modifiers, or Infernal Hordes and Hellfire activities. While I can do one over and over, I like how Warplans amps the reward for doing different things in succession.

Each of these activities also have their own skill trees as you can modify them to change how you are rewarded. For example, I spent on upgrades to lair bosses to have a chance to trigger a Nemesis encounter after completion. These are activities that allow you to fight two bosses at the same time for even more rewards. Stuff like this adds more flavor than I could have ever imagined to Diablo IV’s endgame.

What I was also surprised with in the endgame is that, as I grow in power and unlock a new difficulty level, I always see a path to go even higher with my gear and build. What I was in Torment level 5 is vastly different to what my Warlock is at Torment level 10.

When you progress, something new to chase always comes up. From completing the perfect set of legendary gear, to getting ascended versions of said gear, to completing the full 5-set combination for your build, hunting Mythical items, to items with greater affix found in them. It’s a lot, and despite how powerful my character has become, there’s always room for improvement as I feel that itch to find that perfect glove piece to squeeze in an extra critical hit chance that will eventually push my character to clearing content much faster.

Despite all the improvements, I still remain opposed to the series requiring an always-online connection. It’s a years-long gripe from the Diablo III days, but still a valid one, as lag spikes in a game that has endgame content that can kill you in seconds if you let it can be frustrating at times. Bugs occasionally happen. For instance, I had to reset my game whenever my character was stuck in the environment after pulling off a skill that makes you go past enemies. 

But on the PS5, frame rates remain solid when connections are solid. So many numbers and assets going all over the place, as enemy density is so thick that that character’s death is usually caused by my not fully seeing what is going on on the screen at times, which resulted in one-shot mechanics being covered in skill effects and enemy death. The chaos is fine as I expect this from Diablo IV, and it’s good to see it running smoothly during these moments.

Diablo IV is a completely different game than what it was when it hit in 2023. With now two expansions out, it feels like a complete game. The story is finally whole and the endgame doesn’t feel half-baked. This is a peak that I think will be hard for Blizzard to top. I sure hope they do, as they have built a strong foundation to do so, but for anyone wondering if it’s finally worth jumping in to Diablo IV, the answer is a resounding yes.

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Verdict: 4.5 / 5 (Near Exceptional)

PROS

• A fantastic end to Diablo IV’s overall story

• Blizzard cinematics and scenes show why they are at the top 

• Warlock class and other improvements in other classes freshens up the classes to a game that's years old

• Endgame is currently in its peak as its the best its ever been in years due to Warplans, the Horadric Cube, and Talisman sets

CONS

• Online connection results in lag spikes, which leads to the usual frustration from rubberbanding

• Certain campaign activities and segments feel too stretched out for the sake of doing so

What I’ve Played

• Played the entire Diablo IV campaigns from start to the end of Lord of Hatred on my Warlock

• Reached Paragon 225 and have unlocked and currently play endgame activities on Torment 12

• Working on a Druid currently cruising through Torment 9

• I’ve done every activity and have interacted with all the new systems and additions in the expansion

• Spent over 100 hours so far since the release of Lord of Hatred 

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About the Author - Carlos Hernandez

Carlos Hernandez is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Too Much Gaming, where he writes about video games, reviews, and industry news. A lifelong gamer, he would do anything to experience Final Fantasy Tactics for the first time again and has a love/hate relationship with games that require hunting for new gear to improve your character.