Diablo III is a highly addictive dungeon crawler that truly tests the skills of the PC gamer.
THE GOOD
-Addicting/challenging gameplay
-Superb leveling/loot system
-Community driven Auction House
-Incredible atmosphere
THE BAD
-Online connection issues
OVERVIEW
The mysterious world of Sanctuary was freed from the wrath of Diablo, the Lord of Terror, some twenty years ago. The last surviving member of the Horadrim and long time hero of the series, Deckard Cain, makes a valiant return with his niece Leah. The opening scene depicts the two of them frantically trying to decipher the pages of an old prophecy. Before Cain can interpret the ancient text, the heavens open up and a fiery object comes barreling towards them. The fireball destroys the old cathedral where the two were located. Out of the rubble Leah emerges but Cain is nowhere in sight.
Shortly after, the player's character, know as the Nephalem, arrives in the town of New Tristram to investigate this mysterious event. A worried and desperate Leah asks the hero for help in this grave situation. This quest however isn't going to be easy because the forces of hell are increasing in numbers and on the move yet again. Even worse is the fact that there are other demon lords lurking around and plotting the demise of mankind. This is where the adventure begins and it's up to the brave Nephalem to find Deckard Cain, locate the fallen star, and vanquish the forces of evil that continue to plague the innocent people of Sanctuary.
The story in Diablo III is broken up into four acts. Each act takes place in a different location in the fictional world of Sanctuary. The plot progresses, for the most part, in a linear fashion with a few side tasks sprinkled into the mix. The story is entertaining and the dialog is decently written although there are a few dull points that seem to drag on longer than you'd expect. The first play-through should take about 20 hours to complete. After the credits role you are given the option to replay the game on a much harder difficulty. At this point Diablo III changes from a story driven adventure to a more strategic experience and keeps you coming back for more.
GAMEPLAY
There are five unique characters to choose from in Diablo III, which include the Barbarian, Wizard, Monk, Witch Doctor and Demon Hunter. Each hero is well equipped with both active and passive skills to be able to handle solo and multiplayer games. As your character levels up, new skills and runes (skill modifiers) become available, which can be mapped to the left and right mouse buttons and 1 through 4 number keys. The builds in Diablo III aren't static like in the series past. Instead the approach is more dynamic meaning that you have the option to switch out, replace skills, and completely reinvent your character at any time. Instead of relying on a skill-tree, the effectiveness of your abilities are based upon your current level and the items that you are carrying. This kind of freedom is refreshing and makes it easy to change things on the fly to effectively handle any situation presented in this game.
Diablo III has a heavy emphasis on the equipment your character is wearing. Most offensive skills are based upon the damage of your weapons. This is a neat idea but can seem a little unorthodox especially when you see a Barbarian wielding a wand or a Wizard swinging a two-handed battleaxe just because the stats are ideal. Despite the anomalies the system works rather well. The loot is categorized into six different quality levels and the rarity of the item corresponds to more enhanced properties. Equipment is dropped by defeating enemies, opening treasure chests, and completing quests. You'll have to be patience and wade through thousands of junk pieces before you find a useful item. However, it is highly gratifying when you do find something that's worth wearing.
If you are still struggling to find helpful items, are impatience (like me), and hate farming for equipment, there is another option available to you. The Auction House is a delightful new feature that lets you connect with the rest of the gaming community in buying and selling items either with in-game gold or real-world currency. This "mini" stock market will definitely put those high school economics skills to the test. The Auction House is an excellent way to increase the effectiveness of your character in a short amount of time and also reward you for your dedication to the game by selling the stuff you do find. If you are really savvy, there is a chance that you could pay off the price of purchasing the game.
Whether you are playing by yourself or with up to 4 people, dispatching baddies is still highly addictive. Diablo III is chalked full of epic bosses, challenging elite monsters and punishing environments. In short, there is never a dull moment as far as the action is concerned. On top of that, there are four difficulty levels (Normal, Nightmare, Hell and Inferno) and the challenge between them increases exponentially. This ensures that you rarely feel like you are overpowered for the game. This idea alone is so appealing and is truly the reason why you'll be coming back for more because most games on the market now just aren't difficult enough.
Playing Diablo III either by yourself or with others means that you always have to have a reliable internet connection. This mechanic is sort of a double-edged sword. It's nice to have all your heroes, equipment, and progress saved on Blizzard's servers so the devastating effects of a computer virus doesn't mean you have to start from scratch. However, always having to play online comes with it's fair share of lag issues. Also, when Blizzard has to make changes and shuts down the servers all you can do is sit and wait.
GRAPHICS & SOUND
The atmosphere paints a grotesque and horrifying picture of "hell on earth" and is accompanied well with the musical score. Monsters, demons, and other foul-looking creatures roam the lands of Sanctuary with death as their only objective. The cut scenes are few and far between but are beautifully crafted and exciting to watch. The character design is done well with cool looking equipment to give that added touch of creativity and individuality. The sound effects compliment the visuals quite nicely too. Beating your foes to a bloody pulp and watching/hearing them explode is very satisfying.
CONCLUSION
Blizzard was done it again and created another highly addicting adventure in the Diablo saga. Diablo III is always challenging and rewarding you from the first couple hours all the way to the 100th hour. There is so much that can happen in a short period of time whether it's earning new abilities, picking up loot, or playing the stock market game in the Auction House. The action is exciting and the RPG elements are handled well. This game is a must have for those that have a powerful enough computer to handle the hefty requirements. This generation of gaming is filled with many titles that offer a fun experience but never really test the skills of the gamer. Diablo III goes against the grain to give the industry what it desperately needs, an epic challenge like the old school games of the past.