Ethan Gach, Senior Reporter: I was not considering d4 items much heading into 2023. After this beta, it’s now possibly the game I’m getting excited about the most this season after Starfield and The Legend of Zelda: Tears from the Kingdom. It was completely unexpected, though it may be, at first glance, greatly just more Diablo.

Eric Schulkin, Video Lead: The most Diablo, Ethan. Like you, I hadn’t considered Diablo IV a whole lot this season. It loomed without anyone's knowledge of my thoughts like the presence of the Prime Evil. It was nice to obtain a preview with this particular beta of how hopelessly obsessed I’ll become using the game’s full release in June.

Levi Winslow, Staff Writer: Obsessed describes my weekend using the beta, TBH. Like the two of you, Diablo IV wasn’t something on my small radar. I knew it had been coming, sure, but I didn’t think I’d grow so enamored using the idea of killing hellspawn until I got some hands-on time using the game. Now, weirdly, it’s all I can consider. I assume rummaging through Hell normally takes up a helluva large amount of my time this June. What classes did y’all take a look at during your time using the beta?

Ethan: I played around with Druid and Necromancer very briefly, but mostly just tied to my Barb, who's extremely boring but I feel weirdly compelled to redeem. I can begin to see the potential at higher levels, however, it’s the minimal “interesting” class I’ve tried.

Eric: I played a large amount of Rogue who, in my humble opinion, is rad. Setting up caltrops and traps, choosing when you should hang back, and employing my bow while dashing everywhere, added variety to the fights for me. We’ll observe how I feel through multiple acts. I also spent just a little time using the Necromancer.

Levi: This time around I played using the Necromancer. I still think the Rogue Is Dope, but IDK, something concerning the Necromancer is busted. Summoning a skull gang to help you in battle (at some point, I had seven skeleton warriors beside me, murking fools), siphoning health from enemies through blood arts, planting curses that deal damage and status effects, that could be along with passive abilities to manage even more damage and status effects…Necro feels OP in the early levels. Some of my power started tapering off as I approached level 20, but even so, the Necromancer was investing in work! It felt good as being a goth, hell-raising chick. Maybe my fave class at the moment. Speaking of classes being OP, exactly what do y’all think about Blizzard’s comments regarding how unequal each character feels at first? Did you notice a power difference?

Ethan: It’s clear it requires the Barbarian some time to come online, but I like that classes have unique power curves. I’m accustomed to MOBAs like Dota 2 where often it takes a while for your investment inside a build to repay. A large amount of that will be mitigated by playing co-op.

Eric: Yeah. To that point, some Diablo classes and builds are better suited to finding yourself at parties. Especially in the first game, which I think is exactly what that Blizzard comment was bothering me. Don’t expect everyone to become the same degree of strong out the gate. The Rogue is the classic damage dealer but additionally has survivability options outside of the standard evade so I always felt like I could cope with what the sport threw my way.

Levi: I agree it’s just a little obvious that not all classes would feel equal in power from the rip. I’m unsure that would allow for such a fun experience anyway. That said, I think there are two classes in particular—the Necromancer and Rogue—that acquire some benefits in the first game, particularly regarding their damage-dealing and maneuverability options. However, things changed around level 20. My partner and I played much of this beta in couch co-op, beside me as a Necromancer and her like a Druid. By the time both of us hit level 20, I saw that they were bodying bosses a little faster than I was. The damage difference wasn’t astronomical or anything, but I could tell she was hitting just a little harder than I was. Still, there is nothing that beats rolling on a hellspawn eight deep and merely jumping fools. That’s my fave thing.

Ethan: What else impressed you both concerning the beta to date? I think my lowkey favorite thing may be the incredible soundtrack that leans super hard into the grim fatalism. Here I am bashing skulls and comparing armor rolls while violins weep like I’m in the middle of the black-and-white World War II movie. The mood shift from Diablo III does a large amount of work to cause me to feel like there's a world worth purchasing here past the multicolored loot slot machine game.

Eric: You can tell real-time and care was put in making that mood shift happen because the grim-dark gothic vibes were immaculate. Hearing goats bleat their last breath never gets old, as it happens. I was most astounded by the overworld. Uncovering the dark corners of Diablo IV’s map would be a satisfying experience. Cellars, dungeons, side quests, and strongholds added a large amount of richness to gameplay and felt well crafted. I did not love the Destiny-esque world events because they tanked my frame rate while playing on PC, and I sometimes felt instructed to participate in them as I was funneled through areas from the map while advancing with the main campaign.

Levi: Yeah, I agree, the planet events were the bane of my PS5's existence too. Whenever I started one, the frame rate would plummet to almost stop-motion levels. It wasn’t good, also it probably didn’t help that I played co-op for the majority of this weekend. That said, I think the planet was probably the most impressive part. The grimness of the narrative juxtaposed using the lushness of some environments created a lasting impression on me. The variety from the locations, the characters you meet, and just how they interact, how evil slowly unfolds as the progress story—Diablo IV comes with an evocative world that I might get lost in. I’ve named it the perfect podcast game. I still believe way, however, it certainly doesn’t mean there aren’t dead roses to prevent and smell from time to time. The world’s teeming with life in most corners, which inspired me to show over as numerous stones as I possibly could.

Ethan: All of this is the reason why I wish there would be a way to play offline, or the social aspects were more siloed. Having random strangers playing around through a bespoke city street can break the illusion, but mostly it simply led to some weird rubber-banding along with other online connectivity issues. Did either individual run into the issue where your character can’t run towards the next instance like they’re caught on the treadmill at invisible breaks within the map?

Eric: Yes, many times. When I’d attempt to run out from the main hub of Kyovashad or perhaps a smaller settlement, my character couldn’t advance further. I do wish there is an offline mode or even a method to opt for these world events.

Levi: It def needs an offline mode. There were a lot of instances when my partner was like, “What’s happening at this time?” as our characters ran in positions trying to leave cities and settlements. Knowing games, I thought it had been frustrating albeit hilarious. My partner? She didn’t have the same patience, locating the rubber banding more frustrating than hilarious. The dichotomy between the two people. That said, it wasn’t much of a nuisance after late Saturday into early Sunday. I didn’t encounter the problem nearly as much because the beta slowly wrapped up. Hopefully, that’ll be smoothed out within the full game. Speaking from the full game so that as we start wrapping this up, is Diablo IV a day-one buy for y’all? I think my partner is invested enough for me personally to pick this up as it pertains to June 6. She’s keen on Gauntlet Dark Legacy and we’ve played Minecraft Dungeons to hell and back, so another couch co-op dungeon crawler is going to become great for us.

Ethan: I do think the beta, while an excellent first impression, is just one small glimpse into what Farmville might be, so I’m curious to observe how the final product shakes out. Will the sport feel polished or as an Early Access release? It was only a couple of months ago that some developers told The Washington Post that there is internal pressure to potentially crunch to get the sport out by June. And the biggest question is going to be around monetization. The real-money auction house was this type of spectacularly bad concept that killed all goodwill and momentum for Diablo III initially. The game eventually recovered, but it had been a huge misstep. I hope Diablo IV avoids and might keep the seasonal live-service microtransactions as far off towards the side as you possibly can. Hopefully, that’s what the d4 items were for.

Eric: I’d prefer to believe I’d possess the self-discipline to hold back out those first weeks and find out what state the sport launches in, however, who am I kidding? I’ll be considered a day-one purchase, too, enhancing the people of Sanctuary to examine their collective mommy issues. The beta showed me an adequate amount of what I wanted in a new Diablo game.

Levi: And we all possess some mommy issues, particularly when Mommy Succubi Lilith comes knocking. Yeah, the beta would be a good glimpse into Sanctuary’s depravity. I’m stoked to determine just how deep that hellhole goes.