Complete Unironic: Should I buy this or Diablo 4? If you're kind enough, why. TiA

[merkava808]

Title, basically. But I cant commit to two ARPGs. The opinion among those I ask is split between "D4 is perfect" and "D4 is dogwater", even with the latest updates to it.

[merkava808]

And I would be looking to make it my 'main' game, a la World of Warcraft back in the day.

[AtmanB]

It is trendy to hate blizzard, diablo 4 is fine. It just is more "casual" and doesnt have the lasting power more hardcore players want. It also doesnt tread any new and innovative grounds so people who play lots of ARPGs get bored fast.

[PapiDeHusky]

i would probably prefer this one since all expansions will be free
from what i heard / told me

[Vespertellino]

D4 is perfect dogwater

PoE 2 seems really rough in terms of balance atm, because melee characters struggle since early lvls, while ranged ones obliterate everything on sight
Boss fights are stellar though, great mechanics, visuals and overall dsign

It might not be perfect atm, but one day it will
Not sure if D4 can do that

[Kao]

D4 if you’re gonna play as a casual
PoE 2 if you enjoy challenge
I think that’s the simplest way to put it

[AtmanB]

if poe 1 is any indication poe 2 will grow and keep you engaged for years to come. That is all based off poe 1 history and the fact that similar minded people (mostly the same people as well) are making it. hope i helped.

[Diminutive]

Do you want a finished experience that has a semi entertaining gameplay and story, get D4.

Are you willing to suffer from constant changes in the balance with missing features but overall great gameplay, get PoE2.

Honestly between the two, I'd say play poe1 till poe2 is out of early access, it is by far the best game of the choices while being a finished product imo

Personally I'm onboard for this ea train wreck poe2 since I've already spent hundreds if not thousands of hours on poe1 already.

[miki]

I would choose Diablo 4 for now. But you should check out Hades if you want a game that's better than both in my opinion.

[Astasia]

Neither game is "main game" material. This genre is about playing the game for like 2-4 weeks at a league start, then moving on and playing something else. You get through the content fairly quickly, there's no endgame timegated treadmill to get stuck on for months at a time. You can mostly complete a character in a week or two, minus a few potential chase uniques that could occupy a slightly longer grind to attain. Then you make another character, then maybe another, then you've mostly exhausted the current content and wait for the next league to spice things up with new mechanics and repeat, in the meantime you pick a different game in the genre to do the same with.

If you want to make this genre your "main genre" then you will probably be regularly playing 3-4 games in it. Diablo 4, PoE1, Grim Dawn, PoE2, Torchlight Infinite, and Last Epoch are all serious considerations for your time, each has strengths and flaws. I really don't think anyone remotely interested in the genre should skip any of those. Currently the one that stands out from the rest is PoE2 though, and that's because it "innovates" by turning the game into a WASD dodgefest with extremely drawn out and tedious boss fights designed to kill you for not paying attention. The pacing and gameplay is very different from the others, which you may or may not enjoy, and may or may not change with player feedback.

[Matti]

Originally posted by merkava808:

Title, basically. But I cant commit to two ARPGs. The opinion among those I ask is split between "D4 is perfect" and "D4 is dogwater", even with the latest updates to it.

both bad, save your money, wait for summer 2025 poe2 release, maybe they implement peoples feedback.

[takes_reign]

D4 is finished and a fine game if you are satisfied with the more casual experience it will offer compared to what PoE 2 will when finished.

An excellent alternate option to either, at least until PoE 2 is in a better place, is Grim Dawn, a ARPG that has been out for some time and is generally held in high regard. It will actually be getting a new expansion next year.

[-Reilley]

I like diablo as a franchise (used to push top 10 NA in early seasons D3 solo/4's)... I have been disappointed in their approach to end game this time around. It's fun for awhile but it gets old really quickly. It's just a never ending cycle of "what event is up, turn in your tree quests, do the same dungeons, maybe do some bosses". It's really great value as like....a game on game pass but not as this premium priced AAA game they want you to shell out $60 every expansion for.

PoE is a game I've been playing every couple of seasons since 2013. There's about as much depth as you want to put into it and it seems like there's a lot to explore this time around. I'm liking the engaging combat so far and it's a nice change of pace to have something more challenging than a 1 button build.