Friday 13 August Blizzard Entertainment launched beta Diablo II: Resurrected… The first round of open testing was accompanied by many errors. At 20:00 Moscow time, users who had pre-ordered and thus got early access to the remaster were allowed into the game. Despite the restrictions, the number of applicants exceeded all reasonable limits, and Blizzard Entertainment’s servers could not withstand the load.
The launch of Diablo II: Resurrected met buyers with a queue on the server and crashes from the game, followed by the inability to log in again. In the latter case, the menu displayed a message about the player’s presence on the server, they say, why enter, your character is already in the game.
The inconvenience was experienced by absolutely all users, regardless of the platform. True, the Americans were a little more fortunate. According to Twitch, some US residents managed to break into the server and play for more than 10 minutes, after which the Europeans were usually kicked out.
Is the game so interesting that it is worth waiting in line in the constant attempts to connect? A day later, when we finally got to play, we saw the following.
Diablo II: Resurrected is a truly complete remaster, combining both the old and the new picture. Both versions of the game are launched in parallel, and users are free to switch between them by pressing one button (combination of L2 and touchpad in the PlayStation version).
The original can be customized by setting the resolution in the menu to 640 by 480 or 800 by 600 pixels, high or low quality lighting, turning on or off blurring of shadows and perspective mode. The remaster can be run on PS5 in “quality” mode with increased graphics settings, or “performance” with a frequency close to 60FPS, and you can also adjust the degree of approximation of a 3D picture (pseudo “640 by 480”).
In general, the settings screen is replete with all sorts of options for sliders and checkboxes. The developers propose to adjust the parameters of the sound, interface and special features. In terms of graphics, this is still the same good old Diablo II, only stretched to full screen 4K-panel with all that it implies. The role-playing game, which is not sharpened for the high frame rate of the current time, is lagging, animations look jerky, and the 4: 3 format cuts the picture. Modern players unfamiliar with the series are advised to switch to a fresh engine, where Diablo II: Resurrected appears in all its glory.
Blizzard Entertainment really did its best by completely redrawing the environments and characters. Some even added new movements. At 60 frames per second, the game runs very smoothly and does not slow down, although the decrease in graphics quality compared to the “quality” mode is visible to the naked eye.
What did not like
With a soft and juicy picture of the environment, the details of the interface look like an ugly duckling. Huge names over the heads of opponents are strongly out of the general picture. You want to turn them off in the settings and forget them like a bad dream. Unfortunately, with all the flexibility of the parameters, this cannot be done, since the name acts at the same time as a scale of the enemy’s health, which means it is an integral element of the gameplay. Bad decisions can also include buff icons and other elements for which the project artist is responsible.
What we liked
The Russian voice acting is almost perfect. The voices of the characters encountered in the first area have been chosen quite well. Yes, the actors replay in places, but among them there are no gundos or mumbled personalities, which allows users who do not know English to fully immerse themselves in the atmosphere.
In the tradition of Blizzard Entertainment, the high-quality redrawn videos are long-lasting and make players feel the story.
We should also mention the first-class sound in the remaster. High-quality 3D and detailing make it louder, and the muttering of zombies and the rustling of skeletal bones add an entourage. In the original, the sound and music are cut, but not so much. Voices stand out for their quality from the general picture, forcing you to smile involuntarily.
Mechanics
The pillars with useful skills remained in place, but the modern player will be stunned by their long action. Fans of role-playing games are used to the fact that buffs fly off the character almost instantly, and in Diablo II: Resurrected they last for minutes, at first allowing them to doubt the correct performance of the beta.
Auto-clicking enemies also works in the console version, only this time you have to press the hit button (“cross” in the PlayStation version). The hero will endlessly swing the sword until he finishes the foe, and also chase him at a short distance. Alas, but auto-guidance is not fully worked out and the character has to be directed, turning to face the enemy, otherwise the ward will cut the air with a sword until he is killed.
The remaster has a run button (L3 in the PlayStation version) and a stamina bar. Interestingly, it works according to the rules of computer, not console games – once pressing the button, the player will turn on the run, which will not turn off until the button is pressed again. Even if stamina goes to zero, running will not turn off – the scale will fill up and the hero will run again (relevant after exiting the game and then loading).
Other possibilities
- The transparent mini-map can be positioned in the upper right or left corner, as well as expanded to full screen.
- You can sell, throw and equip items by pressing or holding one button, it is not necessary to transfer them from inventory to inventory.
- Using the recognition and movement scrolls only works through the quick action buttons (down, up, left, right in the PlayStation version). To find out the hidden properties of an item, you need to throw the scroll into the item panel, exit the inventory, press, for example, up, automatically go into the inventory and select the desired item. Looks wild until the tome is found. It works as it should.
- There are two quick action and magic panels – normal and by pressing a button (L2 in the PlayStation version).
- Open magic possibilities can be installed on one of the free buttons (square, triangle, and so on in the PlayStation version).
- The downloads last only a couple of seconds, although the movements are accompanied by a picture.
During testing, there was only one serious bug: after using the skills, the buff icon did not disappear. Rebooting and casting another spell did not help – it also worked “indefinitely.”
There are five classes available in the Diablo II: Resurrected beta: Amazon, Barbarian, Paladin, Sorceress, and Druid. Users can go through the first two acts of the story campaign, as well as take part in co-op adventures for eight people or PvP duels.
The test version only works online. If the server goes down, you have to start over. Because of this, there is no pause in closed mode, and to start the game, you need to link your PSN account with Battle.net on the official website.
Diablo II: Resurrected is scheduled for release on September 23rd for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X | S and Nintendo Switch.
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