In just a few short days since its releaseDiablo 4has already smashed previous records for Blizzard in terms of sales and concurrent players. Millions of players all over the world are enjoying the latest adventure in Sanctuary and the new live-service model will likely help to ensure that fans will be playingDiablo 4for years to come. Blizzard has clearly defined plans to support the title with seasonal content and expansions post-launch, with the first new content and Battle Pass set to drop at the end of July. Between the live-service pivot and the ways the game smartly evolves genre staples like buildcrafting and co-op play,Diabo 4sets high expectations for future ARPGs.
Diablo 4’s successful launchcomes as a stark contrast to the wayDiablo 3stumbled out of the gate before being course-corrected with theReaper of Soulsexpansion. In the intervening years betweenDiablo 3’s launch and the announcement ofDiablo 4, free-to-play ARPGPath of Exilesomewhat dominated the position at the top of the ARPG pile thatDiabloonce occupied. In taking some of the best parts ofPath of Exileand adapting them to theDiabloformula and production values, Blizzard has crafted an ARPG that sets the new gold standard for the genre.
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How Diablo 4 Elevates the ARPG Genre
Despite being a free-to-play game,Path of Exilefound tremendous success as aDiabloalternative thanks to its release timing and features. While many fans of the series were frustrated withDiablo 3after its less-than-stellar launch,PoEshowed up to remind players what they loved about the ARPG genre. Featuring 7 playable classes and nearly endless options for build customization,Path of Exileappealed to fans ofDiablo 2that felt betrayed byDiablo 3’s new direction. In returning the series to its roots,Diablo 4seems to have finally reconciled these players and brought them back into the fold.
Before even beginning to analyze how the open-world live-service approach is a perfect fit for theDiabloseries and ARPGs in general, it’s important to recognize thatDiablo 4succeeds largely because of the options it affords players with how they build out and progress their characters. AlreadyDiablo 4is proving to be much more complex in terms of player builds than previous games in the series. Even as players begin to enter the endgame and experience growing pains with the progression and in-game item economy,Blizzard is releasingDiablo 4balance patchesand supporting the title. Between plenty of content to dig into, a breathtaking presentation and graphical style, and a future as a live-service title with nearly limitless potential and continued developer support,Diablo 4is the new benchmark for ARPGs.
Future ARPGs That Could Benefit From Following in Diablo 4’s Footsteps
Since its inception,theDiabloserieshas been used as the basis for countless ARPGs, including the aforementionedPath of Exile.Diablo 4establishes that the open-world live-service format is a great fit for the genre, despite some players' misgivings about live-service games in general. If Blizzard is able to continue successfully supporting the title through regular patches and rebalancing alongside content drops and expansions, it could set a precedent where many other similar ARPG series follow suit in the future. One title that comes to mind, in particular, is theMarvel Ultimate Allianceseries.
The Marvel IP continues to be one of the most commercially viable among licensed properties, and despite middling reviews,Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3sold well and received several expansions. But if the next game in the series were to borrow ideas fromDiablo 4’s post-launch content, it could transform the property entirely. Imagining aMarvel Ultimate Alliance 4(or, better yet, a proper sequel to or reboot ofX-Men Legends) that features fewer heroes with well-defined and branching skill trees, procedurally-generated dungeons, and a rich open-world set in the Marvel universe is an enticing prospect.Diablo 4has redefined the elements that will be considered must-haves from future genre titles, and not only for ARPGs.
Diablo 4is available now on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
