Diablo IV" Press Review! The deep character development and power-up of the "Druid", which was unknown in the open beta, is not to be missed!

Ahead of the June 6, 2023 launch, a press review of Diablo IV was held. While previous open beta tests only allowed players to play the early stages of the game, the press review did not have these limitations and allowed for a more in-depth experience.

Diablo" is the game that established the huxla genre, in which players develop their characters and strive for the ultimate in strength. Even today, the "Diablo" series continues to have a strong influence on the Huxla genre and can be called the holy grail of the genre. Diablo IV" is the first new numbered title in the series in quite some time, and it has been a big hit overseas, where the Huxla craze is high.

In "Diablo IV," the player is constantly defeating monsters, acquiring equipment, and using it to take on stronger monsters. The "Diablo" tradition of repeating this process is being carried on in this new title as well. When you defeat monsters, equipment falls in pieces, but these pieces are randomly generated. Even the same equipment has slightly different performance (with different special abilities) each time, so it is a lot of fun to check the loot. Sometimes, equipment that falls from a casually defeated monster has a good special ability attached to it, and you may end up using it for a while. This makes every battle fun, and it is interesting to see the personal drama that spins out of each piece of equipment.

And as your character levels up, you can learn various skills. It is up to the player to decide which skills to learn and how much to develop them. In today's gaming world, it is common practice to follow the trends of the current environment by gathering information, but "Diablo IV" allows for plenty of trial and error. Skills can be reassigned anytime, anywhere at a low cost, so feel free to experiment before a boss battle or when you pick up equipment with interesting special abilities. Some equipment is a Legendary Item, which gives special effects to certain skills. This makes training interesting, as you may choose a skill you have not used before and find that it is surprisingly strong.

There are five types of character occupations: the "Barbarian," who excels in meat-and-blood combat; the "Sorcerer," who manipulates magic; the "Rogue," who attacks with quick movements; the "Necromancer," who revives corpses; and the "Druid," who transforms into a wolf or bear and uses magic to manipulate nature. In addition to leveling up and becoming stronger, each profession has its own unique system that is unlocked by completing specific quests. Some of the unique skills change the way you stand and have a significant impact on the game. In the case of druids, we were not able to unlock their unique systems during the open beta test, so we did not get a full picture, but we were able to experience that as well during the press review.

Those who have played Druid in the open beta test so far will remember that the monsters dropped "druid spirit offerings," items that have no use at this point, but this is what makes the druid's unique system so important.

As the druid levels up, the quest "Druid: Spirit of the Lost Forest" is automatically received. If you conquer the fortress of "Thul Durla" in this state, the druid's unique system will be unlocked. The world of "Diablo IV" is dotted with numerous strongholds, including forts, where countless monsters hang out. Once the monsters are all destroyed, the strongholds can be overrun and function as cities. Some of them are equipped with waypoints that allow instantaneous movement, making adventuring easier. However, the monsters in the strongholds are tough and seem to be compensated in such a way that they exceed the player's level. Once I was wiped out in Tur Durra, and when I returned after raising my level a few levels, the monsters had also raised theirs.

I am not sure if there is a limit to this correction, but it was possible to win the game by myself if I raised my level and reviewed my skills.

In Tur Durra, there are countless monsters, the druids who are the mid-bosses, and the big boss, the demon Baalgemoth. The most powerful enemy is Baalgemoth, which is highly durable and attacks by breathing fire. In the old Huxla games, one has an image of battle scenes in which players stand on sticks and beat each other up, but this is not the case, at least in "Diablo IV. Boss-level monsters have dangerous attacks that are heralded before they are triggered. You have to see this and dodge. Although it does not require as severe a reaction as an action game, the point of "Diablo IV" is that you cannot win by standing on a stick.

Baalgemoth is no exception, and victory comes closer if you catch the harbinger of an attack. Even if you are defeated, you can continue immediately from a nearby checkpoint, so try various combinations of skills.

If you can defeat Baalgemoth, you will gain control of Tul Durla, and if you complete a few simple quests afterwards, you will be able to use the druid's unique system. The deer, hawk, wolf, and snake spirits in Tul Durla each have four passive skills (skills that automatically enhance a character's abilities), which can be obtained by offering druidic spirit offerings. For the deer, it grants "Blessing of the Briar Thorn (bounces back some of the damage received)" and reduced damage from elites (mid-bosses). Hawks increase critical hit rate, attack speed, and life. Wolves have a certain probability of recovering mental power used for skills and extending the duration of powerful depth skills. The serpent has a wide range of electric damage and recovery when using transformation skills, which are all powerful.

However, one passive skill can be turned on per spirit, giving the druid a maximum of four different effects, making the druid stronger. You can choose which passive skill to turn on yourself, which makes the skill composition even more profound. After the open beta test, there were whispers that druids were the weakest, but it is no exaggeration to say that you can enjoy a power-up that will blow away such rumors.

The world of "Diablo IV" is an open world, where various "random events" occur. A merchant is being attacked by a monster, a pagan is performing a mysterious ritual, and so on.

Random events are held to break in and smash the monsters' plans. Since it is battle-based and quick, it is the perfect way to refresh yourself. Although it is hard to put a number on it, it seemed to us that random events were occurring at a higher rate than in previous tests.

Especially noticeable were the random events in the dungeon. In the tests already conducted, players commented that the dungeons were long and drawn out. However, the high frequency of random events in the dungeons in the press review seemed to make such stalling less noticeable.

Overseas games are characterized by open development that actively conducts tests and incorporates users' opinions even before release, and it was a pleasure to see such an attitude in "Diablo IV" as well.

The fun of "Diablo IV" lies in its fast-paced combat, creative training, and item collection, and this remains true even after the early stages of the game, which were experienced during the open beta test. As characters level up, they learn more skills and have more options for how to combine them.

The depth of character development has increased since the time of the open beta test due to the unique system and the ability to change skills with the occasional Legendary Item. In fact, there are parts of the druid's unique system that have not yet been released, and the "Paragon System," which allows you to make your character stronger after level 50, remains whole. The previous title, "Diablo III," was characterized by its content that allowed players to continue to strengthen their characters indefinitely, and it seems that "Diablo IV" will also offer plenty of fun in terms of training.

The "Diablo" series has been receiving great support in the U.S. and Europe, and there is a lot of excitement in anticipation of the release of the new title. Diablo" is not a game that only Westerners can understand. If you are a hardcore gamer or an RPG lover, you will understand the fun of "Diablo IV.

The graphics and character design may look like something that an American would prefer, but if you get into it, it will become a part of you. Japanese subtitles and Japanese audio are included, and the game can be played with a console controller without any problems.

Information on the packaged version

■"Diablo IV

Compatibility: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and

Release date: June 6, 2023 (Tuesday)

Price: 9,800 yen (including tax)

Genre: Action RPG

CERO: Z (for ages 18 and up)

Players: 1 to 4 players

Online environment: Required

Download version information

Diablo IV
Compatibility: PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PC

Release date: June 6, 2023 (Tuesday)

Price: 9,800 yen (tax included)

Genre: Action RPG

CERO: Z (for ages 18 and up)

Players: 1 to 4 players

Online environment: Required

Present Campaign Outline

<Prize

■The PC version of "DIABLOIV" (downloadable version) will be given away to one lucky winner!

In commemoration of the review, we are giving away the PC version of "DIABLOIV" to one lucky winner! The prize is a downloadable version of the game, and the Battle.net application must be downloaded to play the game (the application is free).

• <Entry Requirements
• Entry period: June 6, 2023 (Tuesday) - June 13, 2023 (Tuesday) 23:59
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