Blizzard has done an amazing job in getting Diablo 2: Resurrected fit for today's sharper, higher-definition standards. The core gameplay is still there, but everything looks glorious. The cinematics have not been upscaled like other remasters. Instead Blizzard put in tons of work to redo them shot for shot. And they look freaking amazing, especially when you compare them to the legacy versions.
Quick notes
- Switch between legacy and remastered on the fly
- Still has the old school Diablo 2 feel, meaning it can be really hard.
- You'll want to read up some old guides (and they are still relevant!)
Everything in the original Diablo 2 is back, including the Lord of Destruction expansion. You get to hack and slash with all seven classes: Amazon, Assassin, Necromancer, Barbarian, Paladin, Sorceress, and Druid. The new graphics go all the way up to 4K. If you played Diablo 3, then you'd find the aesthetic to be quite similar. As remasters go, this one lets you toggle between the older graphics and newer, which is great. You can play in legacy mode for the feel, but you'll quickly miss the improved graphics — I know I did.
The core gameplay remains the same. Like the original, the game doesn't do a lot of babysitting. You'll have to carefully allocate your stats (mostly Vitality), and choose the skills you level up carefully. Unlike Diablo 3 where your skills are pretty much standardised, Diablo 2 will punish you if your don't level your skills carefully in the late game. There are limited respec points for a do-over. You can also go online and party with seven other players just like in the original.
Other tweaks to the game include cross-progression, which lets you bring your character from PC to consoles and vice versa. You will have to buy the game multiple times though, but this means you can game on your PC, then hop over to your Nintendo Switch to continue hacking and slashing on your daily commute. However, there's no support for cross-online play. The stash is bigger and shared between characters, while a new UI gives you all the stats you need handily. You'll need that to min-max the game.
I love the Diablo series, and the Diablo 2: Resurrected reminds me of the fun I used to have. While the game mechanics may feel unforgiving compared to say, the easier Diablo 3, or any modern hack-and-slash game, it's just fun enough that newer players will enjoy the challenge. Get it from Blizzard's online store for the PC version. You can also order it from the PlayStation online store. I'll update when local online stores have the console versions for sale.
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