Diablo 4: Lord of Hatred Review
- Nathan Walters
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
I’m a Diablo lifer. I still play 2 and I bought 4 day one, sunk hours into the seasons, and here i am again, fully suited up for the new DLC. So I can’t wait to talk about Lord of Hatred.
Technically the Paladin is a new character with this DLC, however, having preordered it i already had like 2 months to play as him, and honestly? He’s a beast of a character. Especially the auradin build (the same one my fellow Diablo 2 lifers know all too well). You essentially run around and watch demons melt around you, doing nothing fancy, and somehow i’d hit paragon 220 before i even clocked what was happening.
“But the main focus here is the Warlock.”
But the main focus here is the Warlock. The Warlock is so Diablo coded it hurts. Teased in the Diablo 2 DLC as a little appetiser, the Warlock has finally arrived properly, and they are BRILLIANT. Genuinely Diablo coded. A mage that uses occult magics and summons demon slaves as weapons and minions in order to defeat other demons, knowing full well that one day, the power will take over. Which, honestly, has been the main arc of Diablo as a series since day one. So getting a class built around that exact thematic core? It fits like a glove.
Personally, i’ve been playing the demonology build, because if a game gives me the chance to summon an army of demons to destroy my enemies, i’m going to take it (love you, my little hell-pets). I dabbled in hellfire too, and despite how very effective those skills are, it seemed too close to the Sorcerer for me to really want to spec into. The fantasy is just a touch too similar.
“our character and our gruff-voiced companion Lorath travel to Skovos.”
The story takes us somewhere new (and old)
Story wise, we see our character and our gruff-voiced companion Lorath travel to Skovos. An island which Diablo 2 fans and lore lovers will know as the homeland of the Amazon class and the sisters of the sightless eye (though they’re technically an off-shoot of separatists, but that’s another rabbit hole for another day).
Skovos is a sunny, grecco-style area that is deeply in touch with its nephalim heritage. The people there know they are descended from both demon and angel, and they embrace it, which brings a really nice and interesting contrast to the angel-loving extremists over in Kehjistan. It also makes “Akarat’s” arrival much less welcome than you’d think, causing a powder keg of viewpoints just waiting to explode.
I mean seriously, if i had a nickel for every time Mephisto took over a bunch of zakurum priests and used them to try and take over a city, i’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot, but weird that it’s happened twice, right? Jokes aside, Mephisto is acting much more like Belial, the Lord of Lies, across these past two updates.
“the skill tree has been changed… yet again”
Gameplay wise, the skill tree has been changed… yet again. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a good change, and more levels and higher skill caps is always fun, but having to respec each time is, a little jarring. There goes my muscle memory.
Speaking of builds, we have a whole new toy to mess with called the talisman. You add charms to it of various rarities with different stats and perks, and the best part? You can get set item charms! Oh how i’ve missed that verdant green shining on the ground, the hunt for a complete set for those sweet, sweet bonuses. Set items were honestly one of the best things in Diablo, so their removal was, frankly, baffling.
And then there is fishing.
Yup. You heard that right. Fishing. In a Diablo game. We got fishing in Diablo before GTA VI. You fish them, you collect them… yeh, it’s fishing. As you may be able to tell, i’ve yet to get used to the fact there is fishing in my loot-goblin simulator. That being said, the fish do have rarities… okay, fine, you win Blizzard.
“i’ve yet to get used to the fact there is fishing in my loot-goblin simulator.”
Also, the voice of Shi Yugong, the man who tells you about fishing, is James Hong, the voice behind Covetous Shen, who always seemed like more than meets the eye, and his name means Covetous Deity. So who knows, maybe this guy is a secret fishing god, and Blizzard are dropping breadcrumbs (or, well, fish food).
“the sheer gravitas she carries every time she’s on screen is just unmatched.”
But the best part, the part that outweighs everything? The return of the queen, the return of Lilith. Whom I still believe is the best Diablo villain to date, better than the titular demon himself. She’s what a demon really, is. Not unjustly evil, but a slave to her existence, unlike the nephalim. Angels and demons are glued to their planes, hatred, justice, terror, hope, valor, destruction, these aren’t personalities, they’re prisons and roles. Lilith broke free for a moment to create Sanctuary, and she does truly love it, but she’s still a demon, and she acts accordingly. But the sheer gravitas she carries every time she’s on screen is just unmatched. She’s brilliant.
The end game is also cooking and finally gets some of the best updates the game has had so far. Echoing Hatred is a horde mode that climbs its way through the world tiers until you finally succumb to the endless onslaught of demons and villains. Annoyingly, you’ll need a consumable to start it, just like for dungeons, aether lords and other events, which i assume exists to slow down the grind somewhat.
The game mode is similar to The Pit in the sense that it’s unlimited and gets harder, but instead of going up in increments, you get it all non-stop.
There are also War Plans, which work as an itinerary of events you blast through like a list, world boss, dungeon, etc, one after another, without the pick-and-choose and time wasting in between. Glorious for the true minmaxxer.
Extra levels, new classes, new skins, a new area, and a a continued gothic, grandiose tone. The Diablo 4 Lord of Hatred DLC is genuinely fun, gritty and addictive. It’s not flawless, the constant skill tree shuffles and consumable-gated endgame are still grumbles of mine, but the wins outweigh the rough edges by a country mile.
