Diablo 4 Review: From Launch Disaster to Present State

Review Update – Diablo 4 (Season 8 & Patch 2.2.0)

📅 Updated: March 7, 2025

Does Season 8 Finally Fix Diablo 4’s Endgame?

With Patch 2.2.0 and Season 8, Blizzard introduces several permanent additions alongside another seasonal mechanic. But does any of this truly address the game’s core problems?

---

🔹 What’s New?

✔ Boss Ladder – A structured system with Belial as the top boss.
✔ Boss Powers – A new system where players collect 24 unique powers from bosses to augment builds.
✔ Lair Boss Rework – You can now test fights before spending summoning materials.
✔ Seasonal Mechanic: Apparition Incursion – An open-world boss rush event that drops special collectible powers.
✔ Class Adjustments & New Uniques – Various nerfs, buffs, and tweaks across all classes.

---

🔸 The Problems Remain

Despite some structural improvements, many of Diablo 4’s core issues remain unresolved. Here’s what still needs improvement and how it could be fixed:

❌ Making Torment harder to reach doesn’t fix its lack of purpose.

• Possible Fix: Introduce collectibles that reward players for collecting full sets, exploring zones, or completing challenges. Rare collectibles could be locked behind higher Torment levels to add a reason to push difficulty besides just making numbers go up.

❌ Boss Ladder is just a structured grind—no true endgame variety.

❌ Loot remains underwhelming across the board.

• Adjustment: Summoning bosses is easier with the overhauled ladder system. Resources required are now to access loot after defeating the boss
• Possible Fix: The game needs more build-defining Uniques. Season 8 is adding some, but whether they’re viable remains to be seen.

❌ Slowing early leveling (1-25) is out of touch.

❌ Class balance tweaks feel like recycled mechanics.

---

🔥 Fire Sorceress & Hydra Build – Still Neglected

If you were hoping for buffs to Fire Sorceress or Hydra, think again.

• No new mechanics or direct buffs to Hydra.
• New Boss Powers add some minor Fire damage scaling, but nothing that changes build viability.
• Ice & Lightning get more attention, while Fire remains an afterthought.

---

⚖ Final Thoughts – Two Years Later, Still No Endgame Depth

Diablo 4’s biggest problem remains the same: balance tweaks ≠ content.
Instead of focusing on meaningful progression, diverse builds, or engaging endgame loops, the game is still adjusting numbers and slowing down progression.

➡ If you’re waiting for Diablo 4 to evolve beyond a loot treadmill, this update won’t change your mind.
➡ If you enjoy grinding for incremental power boosts, Season 8 might offer some fun—but nothing truly new.

Verdict: No major improvements to core issues.

---

⚔️ Introduction

Diablo 4 launched with high expectations, promising a return to the dark, gothic roots of the franchise while modernizing gameplay with an open-world structure and live-service elements. As one of the most anticipated action RPGs in years, Blizzard’s marketing positioned it as the definitive Diablo experience, but what players received was far from what they expected. Now, nearly two years later, has Blizzard redeemed the game, or is it still struggling to find its identity?

---

Diablo 4 Review: What Went Wrong at Launch?

Technical Issues and Server Stability

Diablo 4’s launch was marred by severe server instability, making it difficult for many players to even log in. Disconnects and rubberbanding were frequent, especially during peak hours. Blizzard eventually stabilized the servers, but by then, frustration had already set in for many.

Artificial Progression Gating

From the start, it was apparent that Blizzard had intentionally slowed down progression to extend the time it took players to reach endgame. Experience gains were throttled, loot was uninspired, and many mechanics felt like they were designed to stretch out playtime rather than engage players. This approach made the grind feel more like an obstacle than an engaging gameplay loop.

Diablo 4 Loot System: Too Much, Yet Not Enough

One of the biggest problems Diablo 4 suffers from is too much loot, but not enough excitement. Because Blizzard tied upgrade materials to item dismantling, they had to flood the game with loot drops to provide enough materials. As a result:

• Legendaries drop like candy but are mostly useless trash for dismantling.
• The abundance of legendaries kills excitement—finding one doesn’t feel special anymore.
• Top-tier legendaries only offer greater affixes, which just make numbers go up without adding real gameplay depth.
• Uniques are mostly pointless, often used as nothing more than material fodder.
• Few uniques are build-defining, and some builds don’t require them at all.
• The “Wow Factor” is missing. Players never feel like they’ve found an item so powerful they want to change their build just to use it—a fatal flaw for a loot-driven game.

For a game that markets itself as a loot-based ARPG, this is one of its most crippling issues.

Endgame Content – Or Lack Thereof

One of Diablo 4’s biggest launch failures was the lack of meaningful endgame content. Once players finished the campaign, they were left with a monotonous grind through repetitive dungeons, world events, and nightmare tiers. Blizzard marketed Diablo 4 as a live-service game, but the endgame felt empty and unrewarding, with no real incentive to keep playing beyond hitting arbitrary power increases.

---

Diablo 4 in 2025: Has It Improved?

Core Gameplay and Mechanics Overhaul

Blizzard has entirely revamped some core game mechanics, though fundamental issues persist. While the Paragon board has been significantly changed, the skill tree remains largely the same, with only minor adjustments over time. Build diversity has improved slightly, but legendary items still lack excitement and fail to define builds.

• The Paragon board rework was meant to enhance late-game progression, yet it still doesn’t feel rewarding and remains an overly complex grind.
• The best rewards are locked behind extreme RNG, making meaningful upgrades frustratingly rare.

Seasonal Content and Longevity

Diablo 4’s seasonal content continues to struggle with engagement. Most seasons introduce a new mechanic, but they rarely offer enough meaningful gameplay to keep players interested beyond a few days or a week.

For example, Seasons 6 and 7 (Season of the Witch) introduced new mechanics, but neither felt game-changing or worth investing in long-term. The average player could experience all seasonal content within a single day and then be left with the same repetitive endgame grind.

Technical Performance and Stability

To Blizzard’s credit, Diablo 4 has improved in terms of technical stability: ✅ Server stability issues have mostly been resolved.
✅ Load times and stuttering have been significantly improved.
❌ Some performance issues still persist, particularly on older hardware.

Endgame Progression – Still a Slog?

While the level cap was lowered to 60, the grind past that point remains brutal. Players are now funneled into Paragon levels (cap 300), which feel like a drawn-out process with marginal benefits.

• Itemization is still tedious. Players have to navigate a convoluted system of RNG rolls, enchantments, tempering, and masterworking, all while hoping they don’t brick their items in the process.
• The best rewards are locked behind extreme RNG.

---

Monetization & Community Trust

Diablo 4 Battle Pass & Cosmetic Pricing

Diablo 4’s monetization is purely cosmetic, but the pricing model is still egregiously expensive.

• Some cosmetics cost more than $20.
• Battle Pass rewards feel lackluster, and many players see little reason to buy them.
• No meaningful way to showcase cosmetics, making them even less desirable.

Player Base: Is the Game Dying?

Diablo 4’s player base has been steadily declining, with occasional spikes at the start of each season that quickly drop off within a week.

• Blizzard has struggled to maintain long-term player engagement.
• The community meme “Just One More Chance” resurfaces every season as players hope Blizzard will finally turn things around.
• Many players are only sticking around because of time/money invested.

Recently, Blizzard announced they will finally provide a roadmap, but after nearly two years of uncertainty, is it too little, too late?

---

Final Verdict: Is Diablo 4 Worth Playing in 2025?

✔ What’s Improved?

• Game mechanics are better than launch.
• Performance issues have been mostly resolved.
• The initial campaign remains a highlight.

❌ What’s Still Bad?

• Seasons lack meaningful content and fail to retain players.
• Endgame is still a grind for the sake of grinding.
• Loot system and progression still feel tedious and unrewarding.
• Cosmetics are overpriced, and monetization remains out of touch.

TrueScore Gaming Verdict: ⚠️ Mixed Bag

Diablo 4 has improved since launch, but it still suffers from a lack of engaging endgame content and a flawed loot system that undermines player excitement. For newcomers, it’s definitely worth playing for the campaign and core gameplay, but returning players looking for a deep, rewarding endgame should wait and see if Blizzard finally delivers

📢 Share Your Thoughts! Did you play Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2? Let us know your experience in the comments!

Check out more reviews on our Game Reviews Page https://truescoregaming.com/reviews/

📲 Follow TrueScore Gaming for more reviews!
🔗 https://x.com/TrueScoreGaming | 🔗 https://www.youtube.com/@truescoregaming | 🔗 https://rumble.com/c/c-7593076