We are so back
Blizzard’s interpretation of the warlock is an all-time great, a dark spellcaster who wields chaos magic, curses enemies, and tricks demons into servitude. It’s a compelling class fantasy that kept me coming back to World of Warcraft for over a decade, but it unfortunately never had much popularity in the ARPG space, usually being outshined by the more popular necromancer. You can imagine my surprise when it was announced that not only is Diablo II getting new content over two decades after its last expansion, but also that my favorite class is the one who made it in.
I do have to come clean, though. Despite my initial excitement, there was this pessimistic voice in the back of my head that kept asking, “How ‘authentic’ could this possibly be?” It’s always weird when an older game gets updated, especially one that’s older than me, and that can lead to scenarios where the additions feel like fan content rather than something that fits within the original game’s design and aesthetics. Blizzard has always been well-meaning when making changes to their classics, but the bar for some of these genre-defining titles is so unbelievably high that they might as well be considered untouchable, lest you ruin perfection.
After eldritch blasting my way through the game’s five acts, I am glad to report that those doubts were entirely unfounded. The warlock fits in exceptionally well alongside Diablo II’s band of misfits, to the point where you sometimes forget he isn’t part of the original cast. The developers have shown a lot of restraint when it came to designing him, both aesthetically and mechanically, creating a true ARPG character of the past in all the best ways.
MSRP: $39.99
Platforms: PC (reviewed), Xbox, PlayStation, Switch
A good bit of the warlock’s class identity comes from the weapon levitation skill, which allows you to wield a 2-handed weapon without sacrificing your off-hand. Initially, it just seems like a fun quirk to differentiate the character from the rest of the cast, until you unlock the echoing strike and mirrored blades skills, which create multiple copies of your weapon and let you perform nonstop melee strikes from far away. It’s said in-game that the demons don’t feel any fear, but I’m pretty sure a couple of them will flinch when they see five hammers being hurled directly at their face.
Much like the World of Warcraft version of the class, the warlock’s caster playstyle focuses on dealing massive amounts of damage with both shadow and fire magic, creating pentagrams and black holes to take down large groups of enemies, all while chaining them together for shared damage. While it doesn’t seem to reach the insanity of the eldritch skill tree, the warlock’s chaos skills are still a force to be reckoned with, allowing for speedy boss kills and more AoE than you’ll know what to do with.
Now, while the warlock is extremely fun to play as, it’s important to mention that he is too strong, to the point where he replaces the necromancer in functionality and, with the right setup, can outdamage the rest of the game’s classes. This wouldn’t be a huge deal in any other game, but we are talking about a cast of characters who have over 20 years of optimization in the bank, meaning once players actually have enough time to dissect the warlock, he will be unstoppable. I still stand by my previous assessment that the class feels authentic to the original Diablo II experience, but I hope proper balance changes are coming and that the plan isn’t to make every new DLC class overpowered on purpose.
Reign of the Warlock also comes with some much-needed quality of life features, like loot filters (how have they not been in the game for this long?), advanced stash tabs, Steam achievements, and an in-game checklist for all unique and set items, rewarding you with some shiny cosmetics once you identify them all. While there are no new added acts or story quests, the DLC does feature an optional version of the colossal ancients fight near the end of Lord of Destruction, similar to Uber Tristram.
One thing you might notice is that the warlock has no legacy version, and while it would have been cool to see a modern character backported into the game’s old graphical style, there does seem to be an intentional reason for it. Reign of the Warlock creates an even bigger distinction between Diablo 2’s legacy and modern versions, being fully transparent in its intent to test the waters for future content without inserting itself into the original game. Blizzard’s approach feels quite respectful, allowing newcomers to experience the future of Diablo II without alienating the older fans who simply want a modern-day port of the original, creating a win-win scenario for both.
I’m still not sure if I should attribute the DLC’s quality to Microsoft’s leadership or the work of a passionate development team; perhaps it is a mixture of both, but Reign of the Warlock is a truly outstanding update for Diablo II. It’s easy to see that the warlock was crafted by people who have a fundamental understanding of the game’s tone and mechanics, allowing for a fun and creative experience that manages to breathe new life into a classic. If Blizzard manages to uphold this standard of quality in the future, then I wish the best of luck to all other ARPG developers.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.