tag_1234's Full Review: Diablo 2 - Bestseller Series for Windows
After a good year or so of teasing, aborted release dates and other obstacles I finally grasped a copy of Diablo 2. I loved the original game and previews of the sequel made it seem like heaven on Earth.. well for a fan of the original at least. I have some mixed feelings about it (especially with all of the extra time they took getting it out) but this is really the best of the genre.
The basis
Diablo 2, like the original, is a nice hack n' slash game. You can choose one of five character classes (Necromancer, Barbarian, Paladin, Sorceress and Amazon) and fight with them, gain experience, find equipment and complete quests for rewards until you are ready to venture into the next area with even more challenges.
The Story
For a hack and slash I must admit the story line is decent. Everything fits together and looks pretty posh. The cinematics disk is a godsin and really helps bring an overdone topic to life. I felt the last act was a bit lacking. It was what I expected despite the hype Blizzard gave it. The story isn't massive but it works well enough with the game.
Graphics
This game isn't exactly striking. Detail has been improved, more frames make movement smoother but the game really isn't that different graphically. Don't buy this one to ooh and ah over graphics, buy it for the game. The graphics are still nice and fairly high-res.
Sound
Well this was a major selling point for me. The original voices in Diablo were crystal clear and had wonderful voice inflection. The tradition continues in the sequel. There are even different introductions depending on your character class ("Wow! You're a barbarian huh?"-Charsi to barbarian character, "I hoped I'd never see another one of your kind.."-Gheed to necromancer). Monsters are just as vile sounding as the original. The game sounds about perfect and the in game music really sets the mood.
Replay Value
First of all let me say this game is pretty massive. 21 quests and a world about six times as large as the original will keep you busy for quite a while. The levels are still randomly generated (to a lesser degree than the original) and there are still three difficulty levels waiting for you. The introduction of hardcore characters might also be fun (if you die your character is deleted). All and all with five character classes and a massive world and difficulty levels you'll have lots to do although the game may lose the original sparkle.
NPCs
Well in the original you might have wondered if Grizwald and the others were stuffed displays. The townsfolk in Diablo 2 walk around and look a lot more.. well.. alive.. You can even hire mercenaries to fight with you (don't worry folks, no deposit required). The only friendly face you'll see from the original is Cain. Grizwald has been turned to the dark side.
And Greed Sets In.. (new items etc)
Your character can wear armor, boots, a belt, gloves, two rings, an amulet, a helmet and has two spots available for a weapon/shield, two-handed weapon, or two weapons if you happen to be a barbarian. The normal enchanted items use a slightly larger prefix and suffix list than the original but items are created in much the same way. Rare items also grace the game and have around 4 or 5 modifiers and a random name (such as "Blood Thirst" which is the name of a sword). Uniques exist in the same manner as before and are actually rare thanks to the lack of hackers. Set items are a rather nice breath of originality. When a player wears every item in a set they receive a bonus. Yes, items were really well done in this sequel, but wait..
New weapon types such as polearms and throwables exist; bows actually use arrows and powerful gems have been introduced. Anyway suffice to say this will be enough to keep most people happy for quite some time.
Character Classes
Perhaps the best part of Diablo 2 was the departure from the original character setup. Each class has a unique path of skills and runs on a point system. Every level the character gets a new point to add to a skill (making it more powerful or available). This removes the book hoarding of old and requires the character to specialize and choose wisely. The characteristics are set up the same way as the original. You get five points a level and add them to strength, dexterity etc etc..
Characters look a lot more unique but still don't reflect every piece of equipment that they have on (as Blizzard promised).
The classes are pretty well balanced and appeal to a variety of playing styles.
The sorceress is basically the Magic user of old, specializing in elemental magic and defense. The fact that mana recharges slowly makes this class worth it.
The amazon is almost identical to the rogue. Ranged attacks and some wicked skills make this class playable at the extremely high levels (unlike the original).
The necromancer is a peculiar sort. He summons skeletons, golems and can even revive recently slain monsters to fight on his side. This is quite possibly the easiest class to play but can still be loads of fun for the the death incarnate.
The paladin is a noble warrior skilled in enchantment and auras that protect or strengthen all in his party. I honestly haven't played this one much but he still seems balanced.
The barbarian is the true hack n' slash master. When duel wielding and skilled in the weapons he uses almost nothing can stand in his way. This one tends to get a tad boring but that's just my opinion.
Something borrowed
The look and feel of the game is almost identical to the original. The game is still 2D and sprite based. Movement and weapon control is identical to the original allowing you to step right in where you left off. Many of the monsters (fallen and goatmen coming to mind quickly) are back and behave much like the originals.
Modes of play
One of the major problems with the original Diablo were the hacks. Simply download a program and boom! A rotten apple could be invincible, copy other's equipment, gain spells and generally ruin the experience for everyone around them (especially if they decided to attack another player). These issues were addressed perfectly.
Single Player
Want to slug it out alone and not worry about who picks what up? This mode is there for you, like always.
Battle.net
Once again Blizzard provides free play over the internet with a little twist.
The Realms
Ever dream of a place where you don't need to check other players for hacked equipment and put "legit only" in all of your game names (without success in most cases)? The Realms are perfect for this, they're entirely server side. This means that blizzard's servers store your characters and handle most of the processing. The result? There should never be an illegitimate character on the Realms! The only problem with this are a few minor bugs with game creation and joining, lag from a lack of servers and other general bandwidth issues that should be resolved with time.
Open Battle.net
This is much closer to the original Battle.net. Character information is stored on your computer and the creator of a game functions as the server. This makes Open a cheater's paradise and many of the infamous trainer programs are already out and granting insane power to anyone who uses them. If cheating is your thing this place is for you. I strongly suggest that you play Realms if you want your character taken seriously at all. Single player characters can play in Open and vice versa.
TCP/IP
You can also connect to a game with the creator's IP address. TCP/IP games also share characters with Open and single player modes.
Keeping the Peace!
Another of the major issues in the original was the excessive pking or player-killing. It was not exactly fun when you lost all of your hard earned gold to a pker (especially the invincible hacking type). In Diablo 2 players can still fight to the death but its really more of an agreed duel than anything else. A player can "go hostile" with anyone else after level 9. This must be done in town and the other person is informed that you have become hostile. If outmatched the other person has plenty of time to exit the game in most cases (or should not have stayed right outside town). In short you don't have to worry about a stream of unfriendly arrows coming from an opportunistic thug. Players do no damage to each other when not hostile. You can even share experience and gold with your pals automatically!
I want a dagger with everything on it! Don't mess with me!
In the old Diablo trading was a bother at best and disaster at worst. People would drop their items and circle around to collect the other's item (hopefully as promised). Multi-item trades were almost impossible. There is now a window that allows easy negotiation (in town) which has made trading much less risky.
Oh god! That's Great!
Well it turns out that Blizzard's designers have a sense of humor. After the widespread rumor of "the cow level" they actually put one in as well as a few other nifty supprises.
Summary
Simply put if you liked the original you'll love the sequel. The character classes, increased realism, new items and huge game size make this much more than a simple expansion or rehash. The game still is a hack and slash but the best one out in my opinion.
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