It’s here! Diablo 4’s Season 4 Loot Reborn has kicked off after weeks of teasers, a week of PTR testing alongside the community, and even more behind-the-scenes changes following that.
While Loot Reborn doesn’t bring any major new narrative content to the game, it does tackle so many of its itemisation, endgame, loot, levelling and grind problems. It’s effectively a complete overhaul of much of what matters in a Diablo game.
So far, things are looking pretty good for Blizzard and Diablo 4 players. Since the launch of Season 4: Loot Reborn, the game’s community has been celebrating every little piece of it they got to experience themselves. For many, this counts as the “true” launch of the game, or a 2.0 version, if you prefer.
Over on Diablo 4’s big subreddit, players have been sharing largely positive sentiments about the updated experience. “Having played the [three] previous seasons, this is the best start to the season I have played,” wrote Reddit user No_Hat_8401. “I’m having a blast, it’s bleeding, it’s enjoyable.”
“I feel the exact same way. Imagine if [Diablo 4] was like this from the start,” shared another Reddit user.
Many of the commentators agree, too, with plenty bringing special attention to the revamped Helltide event. Helltides have been given a GTA-style threat metre, bolstered with new encounters, a new boss and made smoother to grind thanks to a bunch of smaller quality of life changes. Helltides are now available to players early, too, so they’re no longer limited to just the endgame.
Many of the changes affect how loot is acquired, and make the process of parsing out what actually matters much easier. This has made it so players can focus on the fun of killing monsters, and many have shared how powerful this made them feel.
“Really the whole game feels so better now,” Reddit user Lego_Professor explained. “I feel powerful without having to min max everything or get super specific Aspects. No more need to save items just for the sake of using their aspect roll ‘someday’. Fast mounts in town AND vendors are condensed! Love every bit of this season so far.”
There’s also something to be said for the class balance updates, which further allow for varied playstyles to be viable. Many players are happy to craft their own build without the help of any build guides, but it often felt like you’re going to need to eventually transform into one of the season’s most popular builds to succeed in the endgame.
Necromancer players, in particular, have been sharing their excitement about the increase to the maximum number of minions you can summon, and the wider area of effect on some of their skills. Even the more zoomed out camera has been getting a lot of love.
The broader sentiment isn’t surprising, of course, as the vast majority of what’s here was tested by players in the recent Public Test Realm (PTR). Indeed, many of the things that annoyed them during that test have been fixed, so it’s been perfected.
Nevertheless, for a game that feels as regularly beleaguered as Diablo 4, it’s a nice change of pace to see everyone celebrate it and be excited to play it. I do wonder, however, how far those systemic changes will go considering the lack of any meaningful new content.
