Vessel of Hatred is the first expansion add-on to Diablo IV, and it mostly does an okay job at making the Diablo IV gameplay loop more interesting. There are some new features available that might seem exciting at first, but they will lose value once you invest enough time within them. The story campaign is mostly average that’s garnered by some disappointing moments. The endgame is certainly the better portion.
To play the new content, players are required to pay $40 for this add-on. Honestly, for that amount of money that players have to pay, it does feel slightly overpriced. I’ve been around since Diablo IV’s launch day, and Vessel of Hatred was something I had my eyes on. Vessel of Hatred is an expansion that can be enjoyable depending how many hours you invested in the base Diablo IV.
Story – Still Forgettable, and What’s New?
Diablo IV: Vessel of Hatred begins by continuing where the base game’s campaign left off. Veteran Diablo IV players will remember that Neyrelle, one of your friends, is going through some issues while obtaining Mephisto’s soulstone. She’s certainly a lot more erratic this time around, and it’s up to you to find her presence. It’s not going to be a simple journey because there are many demons that are out to get you, and certain alliances that also have problems with you.
Throughout your journey, you will bump into new characters that aren’t certainly memorable, but they’re there to guide you as you dive deeper into Hell. Story wise, it’s rather uninteresting as you play through the campaign. By the time you finish it, you can certainly feel like it follows the same footsteps of the base campaign. The story isn’t quite the thing that’s going to grab you while playing Diablo IV. It does do a decent job at giving the player a real taste of what the endgame experience will be like.
Gameplay – Kill Them All, and Loot Them All!
It should be noted that I did not start a brand new character while spending time within the expansion. I used my Season Four Barbarian who is now an Eternal character, and I blazed through the campaign relatively smoothly on the game’s hardest difficulty. That Barbarian is at max level, and is currently at Paragon 237 due to my time with the endgame. I did not try out the Spiritborn since it is not the type of class I enjoy while playing these kinds of games. However, I did experience a lot of the endgame portion which is the main focus of Diablo IV’s gameplay loop.
Exploring the Undercity.
Vessel of Hatred’s campaign may feel like an over glorified side mission. However, once you’re done with story content, this is where Diablo IV starts to become more interesting. This expansion has added some new content to the base Diablo IV, but it also reworked a good amount of its existing systems. The new content includes a cooperative only raid activity called The Dark Citadel. There’s also a new dungeon that is similar to The Pit. It’s another time-based activity, but there are some interesting twists called Kurast Undercity.
New & Old Ideas
These new activities are rather fun and feel welcoming to the core endgame activity of Diablo IV. My biggest gripe with these new activities is they don’t seem as beneficial to farm compared to other activities. The Dark Citadel does require a group to play it properly, and it is a slow activity to do. I’d rather just farm Helltides and be able to kill monsters swiftly if I’m in the need for Legendaries. Kurast Undercity is only worth running if you have the desirable Tributes you must look after. These Tributes can offer the player like guaranteed rune drops or boss materials. Other than that, there’s no real point of running them.
Diablo II players will realize that mercenaries have now returned for this Diablo title. They are by far the most interesting feature that Vessel of Hatred has to offer. There are four different types of mercenaries you can hire, and they all serve a role. What’s interesting about them is you can customize their abilities and passive upgrades. It was certainly fun for me to experiment them all, and try to figure out their niche roles. Runewords are also back, and they are disappointing.
Runewords Woe & Nightmare Dungeons
Throughout my journey, I have accumulated many runes and have played around with them. Unfortunately, I just find them to not be worth using over my gems. Gems have also been increased to another rank, so they are more valuable than ever now. I believe allowing players to be able to use runes and gems on their equipment would’ve been more interesting. As of right now, I am just hunting for runes just to craft the elusive Mythic Uniques.
Just as satisfying as finding one in Diablo II.
Of course, a lot of the previous existing endgame activities have also been modified. Nightmare Dungeons used to be the staple of Diablo IV’s endgame grind. Nowadays, it is there for players to farm certain materials for their upgrades. The Pit is now allowing players to improve their precious Paragon Glyphs which means it has way more value than ever. If you’ve been around the block like I’ve had, this does make Diablo IV feel refreshing to play again. The way they reworked the difficulty system was great too. It allows many builds to be able to play through the content without needing an overpowered build. But despite of that, the expansion is still missing something that feels remarkable.
If you’ve played Diablo IV in the past, it’s still the same song and dance in a way. You’re constantly looking for Legendary and Unique Items. You want to farm various activities for crafting materials or improving Paragon Glyphs. Be expected to fight many demons, and just pray you get something good along the way.
Graphics & Audio – The Same As Before
The graphics of this game is basically the same as of the base version of Diablo IV. Back then, Diablo IV did have acceptable graphics for its time, and the same can be said to Vessel of Hatred. Players will bump into a jungle-oriented place once they acquire the expansion. There are some very neat looking environments as you explore the world and do the new dungeons.
Audio on the other hand, Diablo IV does a great job in this section. The spells are wonderful to hear, and they feel alive when you use them. Monsters have always sounded like a threat when they growl at you. Killing them also sounds satisfying especially when you’re doing Infernal Hordes. The music is just as forgettable like the base game’s soundtrack. Personally, it’s fairly sad to see an iconic series like Diablo has fallen off in the soundtrack department because most of these tunes are just bland.
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- World Boss carnage.
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- Doing bounties…
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- Preparing for The Dark Citadel.
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- A beautiful and watery scenery.
