Any tips on how to get back into the franchise?

[JARK]

I feel like I'm still burnt out from loot-heavy ARPGs (last one I played w/ any dedication was Lost Ark in 2022), and I can only dabble here and there in Diablo 4.

How have you managed getting into this game or coming back from a lapse?

[Casul Gamer]

I'm not a fan of how much loot you get in ARPGs either. Last Epoch at least has a built-in loot filter that has extensive customization options so you can filter out stuff you don't need.

There's also Death Must Die. It's a survivors game, but it has ARPG loot with affixes and a skill tree for each character.

If you're into Soulslikes, there's No Rest for the Wicked which is isometric and has ARPG style loot and skills you add to weapons.

Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance 2 (I recommend over the first one) is now available on Steam. It's kind of overpriced, but it's one of my favorite ARPGs and it's quite a bit different. It's 20 years old and the loot is kind of boring, but combat is more about positioning vs enemies instead of spamming skills like in modern ARPGs.

[Inuyaki]

Originally posted by Casul Gamer:

Baldur's Gate Dark Alliance 2 (I recommend over the first one) is now available on Steam. It's kind of overpriced, but it's one of my favorite ARPGs and it's quite a bit different. It's 20 years old and the loot is kind of boring, but combat is more about positioning vs enemies instead of spamming skills like in modern ARPGs.

No idea what that has to do with "modern"? Diablo 1 and 2 are both older than that game.

[tankanidis]

Originally posted by JARK:

I feel like I'm still burnt out from loot-heavy ARPGs (last one I played w/ any dedication was Lost Ark in 2022), and I can only dabble here and there in Diablo 4.

How have you managed getting into this game or coming back from a lapse?

Treat it like a story, rather then a game

Do the campaign, ask yourself if -your- character would make the same decisions the 'story' version of itself is being forced to make, step by step

You'll either become happy or frustrated and that emotion should make you feel somewhat attached to your character

then you just do stuff in bits to improve your character

a helltide here, altar of liliths there, and chip away at it

either you will fall back into the game, or fall out of it, but you will have experienced most of what it has to offer and be 'up to date' on it

[LordOfTheBread]

Install the game, press play. This game is as standalone and as milktioast as possible for new players.

You dfon't need to have played any pf the previous games or even played a top-down arpg before to play this one.

[Valmar]

Originally posted by JARK:

I feel like I'm still burnt out from loot-heavy ARPGs (last one I played w/ any dedication was Lost Ark in 2022), and I can only dabble here and there in Diablo 4.

How have you managed getting into this game or coming back from a lapse?

Install D2 Resurrected.

And voila, you are back into the franchise for real.

[Choppywee]

to not play this game lol

[NONAME]

Originally posted by tankanidis:

Do the campaign, ask yourself if -your- character would make the same decisions the 'story' version of itself is being forced to make, step by step

It's funny because D4 goes out of its way to make your character look like an MMORPG-nobody. The story is about Donan, Lorath and Neyrell and you are just their nameless servant.

For example, there is a huge setup for Andariel's appearance. Lorath even says she can single-handedly destroy whole kingdoms, etc., etc. You eventually mop the floor with her face only to hear from Lorath a minute later that he almost regrets "taking you along" when you question one of his decisions.

And this goes on during the whole story, I always had a feeling that it wasn't really my toon killing all the major villains, but some nameless "group of adventurers".

The game was obviously designed for a party of 4 running around and doing quests.

[tankanidis]

Originally posted by NONAME:

Originally posted by tankanidis:

Do the campaign, ask yourself if -your- character would make the same decisions the 'story' version of itself is being forced to make, step by step

It's funny because D4 goes out of its way to make your character look like an MMORPG-nobody. The story is about Donan, Lorath and Neyrell and you are just their nameless servant.

For example, there is a huge setup for Andariel's appearance. Lorath even says she can single-handedly destroy whole kingdoms, etc., etc. You eventually mop the floor with her face only to hear from Lorath a minute later that he almost regrets "taking you along" when you question one of his decisions.

And this goes on during the whole story, I always had a feeling that it wasn't really my toon killing all the major villains, but some nameless "group of adventurers".

The game was obviously designed for a party of 4 running around and doing quests.

It's even worse because they treat Lorath and Donan like Joel from The Last of Us 2

They deliberately character assassinate both of them at different points to have the story happen in the exact way it does


Donan lost his only son to the Demons. His entire life was being strong enough to resist them mentally, even going so far as to rebuke Lilith directly when 99% of others would fall to her charm 1:1. Yet somehow, even after all this, he sits down in the middle of Hell, too tired to continue and leaves the work to a teenage girl who is a stranger to him, to carry Mephisto's soul stone when EVERYONE is CURRENTLY AWARE that Mephisto's hate has affected them all and will corrupt them further
Lorath went through the D3 Reaper of Souls Campaign helping Tyrael fight everything, be it Angel or Demon. He is supremely aware of the consequences should you fail, and he would NEVER allow a stranger, especially an untested teenager, steal the secrets of the Horadrim and become their 'new generation's leader' to carry on their work. He would never have sat down in Hell and given up to allow her to carry the burden. That's fan-ficiton levels of writing
My Barbarian would have never fought Lilith, would have fought Mephisto instead. She would have NEVER allowed the untested teenager anywhere near the soulstone or allowed her to run off with it. All the time that part of the story was happening i was yelling 'no no no' at my monitor
Why did they make Inarius so weak? we spent 80% of the game hearing his name alone is so scary people don't dare to whisper it openly. Yet he gets turned into a rotisserie chicken by Lilith in the most lacklustre fight i've ever seen.
This is the most designed by committee with 'oh this would be cool' additions thrown in i've ever played in a single game that is more of a cash shop with a game wrapped around it.

[LeftPaw]

I think when you are in this position it's down to your mindset. As someone said here, treat it as a story rather than a slot machine. Before you even boot it up you have to want to or else don't bother. It's not the game, many enjoy it, it's you. It's like changing a bad habit, it's not easy but it is doable.