Diablo 2: Resurrected Review – A Timeless Game Back From The Dead
Jesse Grodman
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What can I say? It’s Diablo 2, the Blizzard game I’ve probably put the most amount of time in. A lot of times, I don’t find myself all too enthused about a straight re-release for my favorite games. After all, shouldn’t they go through with adding in some fun modern stuff? Resident Evil 2 back in 2019 was a delight because I got to experience it again in a new light. Dark Souls in 2018? Who care. Same old game. But there’s something different this time around, something that made me more than willing to shell out the dough for another round of resurrected Diablo 2 magic. Maybe magic isn’t the right word. Necromancy?
The story of Diablo 2: Resurrected is the same as before. In Diablo original, the hero defeats said namesake, only to plant the cursed soulstone of Diablo right in his own dang forehead. Thus, becoming the new king of evil or whatever. Diablo 2 follows the trail of that fallen hero/resurrected Diablo as they walk across the lands, leaving death and destruction and demonic hordes in their wake.
You play as a mortal hero that must fight their way through half a trillion demons in order to fight The Big Demon. Thankfully, with enough XP and the right equipment, your mortal hero becomes incredibly powerful. There are the same seven classes in Diablo 2: Resurrected as in the original, the five of the base game, and two from the DLC. From the blessed Paladin tank, to the leap-frogging Barbarian, to the destruction mage Sorceress, to the wolfman-covered-in-hurricanes Druid, each one is incredibly fun and cool.
I’ve played through a handful of characters in Diablo 2: Resurrected and all of them back in the original game, and I gotta say, no necromancer in all of gaming can compare to the joy I feel playing the Necromancer in Diablo 2. What’s better than a screen full of skeletal warriors swarming the enemies while you cast curses over the foes. Get the Skeleton Rave going.
It’s a classic isometric ARPG. Actually, it’s THE classic isometric ARPG. From the first porcupine you club to death right outside of the camp, to grappling with gigantic arch demons inhabiting hell, Diablo 2: Resurrected is a non-stop violent brawl of jeepers and creepers, many of which are full of treats for your character to consume and equip. Gameplay is all about getting better equipment and levelling up. It’s a simple premise, but as anyone who’s played Path of Exile or Grim Dawn or even Borderlands can attest, it’s a formula that works beautifully.
There is one new feature, actually. Diablo 2: Resurrected has a button that can switch the updated graphics from the current to the original game at will. I hardly think this is to let people reminisce about how the game used to look which, as someone who tried to play the original a few months back, is pretty rough. Rather, I think it serves as a reminder as to how great the graphics are now. And they really are great. The only downside is you get to see how haggard and gaunt the Druid and Necromancer look.
There’s not much more I can write about. It’s incredible fun, doubly so if you’ve got some friends to join you on the way. If you love the gameplay and grind of isometric ARPGs, Diablo 2: Resurrected is for you. It’s a delightful stroll through a nostalgic period in gaming, and if you weren’t around to experience it, it 1000% holds its own against modern games now. If nothing else, Diablo 2: Resurrected is more than able to quench your demon bloodthirst until Diablo 4 comes out.
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