[Preview] Diablo II: Resurrected, Sweet Nostalgia That Also Feels Outdated

Having managed to maintain its popularity for decades as the most iconic action RPG franchise, Diablo is now in a period of more serious renaissance. No longer just focusing on one series, Blizzard has now prepared at least three new Diablo game projects covering console and mobile platforms. One of the games that happened to catch our attention the most is Diablo II: Resurrected, which was just announced a few months ago from BlizzConline as a remastered version of the classic series.

Considering Diablo II is the series that left the most nostalgic impression to many veteran fans, of course, the expectations and enthusiasm for this latest version are also high. Blizzard has even collaborated with developer Vicarious Visions to ensure quality is guaranteed and remains firmly attached to the classic series. A very right decision, especially knowing Vicarious Visions’ track record of being very competent in developing remastered games of the highest quality.

Seeing is not the same as feeling, that’s why we decided to participate in the game’s Technical Alpha stage last weekend. The content offered only includes the single-player mode portion with a choice of three character classes. Our game time was short, but the impressions gained were at least enough to be summarized in this preview article. Instead of lingering, just take a look at our review summary below.

Excellent Graphics Quality

One change that we immediately felt when we tried this game was definitely in the quality of the graphics. We happen to have never played the original Diablo II game, but there is a special feature called “Legacy” that can be activated at any time to restore classic graphics mode. Then how does it compare? Our answer is excellent. This is not just a remastered version that only improves the quality of standard textures and effects modifications, but a complete overhaul of game assets and makes them look closer to modern games.

This significant graphic overhaul even still follows the original game as the main foundation. So the developer wants to bring the atmosphere and environment that is still firmly attached to the classic Diablo II series, but with a new face that is much more pleasing to the eye. One of the effects we like the most is in the lighting effects, where the environment both above the surface and dungeons will get lighting sources reflected from the surrounding environment, the effects of flames and magic attacks, even the “inner glow” effect of your character as well.

This more natural lighting quality also makes some locations in Diablo 2 feel more real, thus making us more motivated to explore many places, all just to see and compare the quality of the graphics that are very well formulated. Graphics overhaul also includes UI to 3D character models that are better blended in a new look. And we really appreciate how the gameplay perspective looks clearer and wider without having to sacrifice the menu display that can cover the character to the level displayed on the screen.

Features and Gameplay

So just like the classic series, Diablo II: Resurrected brings RPG action gameplay with a distinctive isometric appearance. The gameplay follows the story missions divided into Act I: The Sightless Eye and Act II: The Secret of the Vizjerei, each of which offers a series of quests to complete. Before starting the game, we are presented with a choice of three character classes ranging from Barbarian, Amazon, and Sorceress who have different characteristics and play styles. From here you just need to go on missions through various areas, defeating various types of dangerous enemies, while collecting valuable loot to make your adventure run more smoothly.

Mana and Healing are two very essential items in restoring your character’s magical energy capacity and HP, so make sure to always use them at crucial times, especially when dealing with challenging battles. Talking about loot, Diablo II: Resurrected still maintains the same random loot system as the original series, where facing difficult monsters or bosses doesn’t always guarantee good loot to get. This can make the playing experience feel less rewarding, especially if you spend a lot of consumable items just to defeat an enemy who turns out to be poor in loot and seems like a waste of time.

The gameplay control scheme still feels as rigid as the classic series in the past, where you have to manually hover over until skill access is limited to a few buttons. Playing this game on the console might be more comfortable because of the help of the automatic aim system, but for new players we think it will take longer to adapt to the control scheme. For example, when you want to attack an enemy, you can sometimes wrongly press the ground nearby, as well as when you take the scattered loot one by one with mouse click spam.

Another feature that is still maintained can be seen from accessing the skill tree to increase character stats. With the option to strengthen Strength, Dexterity, Vitality and Energy, you are given the freedom to choose what abilities your character needs more. Whether it’s prioritizing points for the skills you use the most, or the built-in stats to make your character feel thicker, at least this is one of the classic systems that we don’t think needs much change.

From here, it can be seen that the gameplay system is not much different from the classic Diablo II series, because Resurrected is more focused on improving its graphic appearance so that it is easily accepted by newcomer gamers. The main reason is also because Blizzard didn’t want to make too many changes that could spoil the nostalgia, and this is something they definitely need to get back to attracting interest from veteran fans.

This “outdated” gameplay sensation actually doesn’t interfere with our playing experience, because in the end the presentation or visual quality of a game can make someone forget what they’re playing. You can trick friends who don’t know Diablo into playing this game, and they may not even realize that the gameplay concept is outdated.

Conclusion

Keeping so many classic elements while offering a new form that can match with today’s games, Diablo II: Resurrected ended up being a pretty unique combination for us. There is an outdated or outdated sensation that is very obvious when playing it live, but at the same time we are also presented with a more fresh Diablo experience. We happen to be gamers who are quite critical in terms of aesthetics, and this game managed to meet our expectations with quality that turned out to be better than expected.

Graphics that feel like a remake game with dynamic lighting and particle effects, improved audio quality, even the addition of a special mode that allows you to change the graphics to classic mode in an instant, from the presentation side they are not kidding.

We did expect a modernization for the gameplay aspect, but at the same time the decision to keep it in such a way with the classic series is also understandable. For us Diablo II: Resurrected can end up being an easy game and a hard one to recommend, depending on what type of player it is aimed at. What is clear now is that we need to wait and see what kind of quality will be offered in the final version later.

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Diablo II: Resurrected

Publisher: Blizzard

Developer: Vicarious Visions

TB release date

Console, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, PC

Diablo II: Resurrected is a remastered version of the original Diablo II series that is more than two decades old. The game offers a significant graphic overhaul while retaining many of the elements that fans still love from the original series.