Diablo Immortal has quickly become one of the most talked-about mobile games of the year, and the reasons are obvious. Standing on the shoulders of its franchise predecessors, the game condenses many of the best aspects of the demon-slaying series into a package playable on mobile. For many, being able to take their favorite Barbarian or Demon Hunter on the road is too good an offer to refuse.
The game's reception by most critics has been positive, but that isn't to say that there's no room for improvement. The transition from PC-exclusive to cross-platform mobile experience has in some ways been hard on the game, as has the transition to a free-to-play model. While most of its flaws won't deter gamers who want the best in mobile action RPGs, players will undoubtedly be vocal about the biggest changes they want to see in the latest installment of this beloved franchise. Here are some of the biggest fixes Diablo Immortal needs.
8 FPS Optimization
Diablo's look has changed over the years, but its aesthetic is reliably grim - no surprise from a series about demons and their violent mischief in Sanctuary. Diablo Immortal's palette is subdued, with prominent grays and browns, but there are a variety of colorful particle effects, especially when multiple players activate their powers simultaneously in a small area.
Some players have experienced significant frame rate issues, even on top-of-the-line mobile devices. While this issue is a predictable one for a recently launched game, especially one as big and as pretty as Diablo Immortal, it's obviously one that needs to be remedied sooner rather than later.
7 Crash Fixes
It's not uncommon for games that simultaneously launch on multiple systems to receive a mixed reception, operating well for some and poorly for others, despite the best efforts of the programmers and play testers prior to launch. Diablo Immortal has in some ways been even more inconsistent, in that even players using the same or similar devices have reported differing experiences.
For some, the game runs beautifully with nary an issue, while for others, the gameplay experience has been ruined by a series of crashes. As with FPS issues, crashes are not uncommon in newly launched games, and there's no particular reason to suspect that the developers won't be able to fix these crashes with a patch. Though a fix is foreseeable sooner rather than later, until one arrives, gamers have reason to complain.
6 Improved Story
Demons want the world to burn. Deckard Cain, the Adventurer, and a motley crew of allies want to stop them. Cue the loot grind, clash of swords and talons, and inevitable confrontation with the Lord of Hell himself. In Diablo, like most loot-centric action RPGs, story always takes a backseat to gameplay, and the gameplay loop is undeniably good in Diablo Immortal.
The illustrative cutscenes are gorgeous, the voice acting is surprisingly good, and there are some standout set-piece moments and puzzles, but none of that changes the fact that the story as a whole is lackluster. Many players won't care and are just happy for a new opportunity to send some demons back to hell, but the world could be far richer and more engaging with better development of its lore.
5 Stronger Immersion
There is a delicate balancing act in any RPG: with every new mechanic that is introduced, the game risks jarring players from its world, making them a little too aware of the artificiality of it all. Action RPGs like Diablo Immortal often manage to become "just one more run" experiences despite those parts of them that jar the player.
The core threat to immersion in Diablo Immortal is the theme park effect created by its MMO elements. Watching a line of players run ahead to talk to the same NPC, to start the same quest, to defeat the same apocalyptic evil gives one the feeling that one is merely shuffling from one attraction to the next, no longer the protagonist but merely another park-goer. Achieving player immersion despite the game's MMO nature is a difficult feat, and only time will tell how Blizzard handles it.
4 Mold-Breaking Mechanics
As the newest entry in a storied franchise, Diablo is inheriting many features from its predecessors. From classes to combat, Diablo Immortal builds upon some tried-and-true mechanics while adopting others directly from previous entries in the franchise. Unfortunately, by hewing so close to the gameplay of previous games, Diablo Immortal has given up on possible innovation in a number of areas.
The few areas that have seen significant change have typically done so in the name of the free-to-play model, which, at best, is a lateral move. By no means does the game have to throw away everything that worked and that players enjoyed in previous entries, but a greater attempt to freshen things up would go a long way towards making Diablo Immortal the kind of game players stick with for years to come.
3 Diverse Activities
Diablo relies on a simple, delicious loop: kill enemies, collect loot, kill stronger enemies, repeat. With a constant influx of new weapons, armor, and gems, the player can keep chasing the perfect gear loadout and the perfect build. For some, that's enough, and it doesn't really matter what shape the game's activities take, because the core loop is a strong enough draw.
Others will find the sameness of much of the game's missions tiresome. Though the game's main mission is interesting enough, tossing the occasional simple puzzle at players to shake things up at least a little, Bounties, Rifts, and other side objective all come down to the same thing: go to place, kill something, go to next place. If a player is less than enamored with this loop, the game simply doesn't have much for them yet.
2 Expand Skill List
Each of Diablo Immortal's six available classes feel fun and distinct from one another. It's as much of a blast to raise the dead as a Necromancer as it is to crush skulls as a Barbarian. Unfortunately, there's only so much variation and choice within each of these classes. The major culprit here is the skill list, which is simply too short and linear.
Though the player has only a handful of skill slots to assign at once, there is no deep, compelling skill tree, and, as a result, there are few meaningful choices to be made. One Crusader is basically every other Crusader, plus or minus a bit of power. The grind for greater strength might be real, but the feeling of creating a unique, interesting character is altogether absent.
1 Reconsider Endgame Microtransactions
If Diablo Immortal is not pay-to-win, it is perilously close. Few would gripe about cosmetics being sold for real money, but the sale of items that grant significant buffs is a real and present issue. An inescapable downside of the free-to-play model is the omnipresence of microtransactions. Everywhere the player turns they are offered the opportunity to spend real money for fictional goods. In the main game, this problem is essentially nonexistent, as there are no areas of the main story that are truly gatekept by money, and a player can finish the story without needing to spend a penny.
When the endgame and PvP are considered, however, microtransactions become a huge issue, as the purchase of gems in Diable Immortal gives the upper hand to those willing to cough up real money. Monetization is a necessary evil here, but if not kept in check, it could spell the doom of an otherwise excellent game.
Diablo Immortal is available on mobile and PC.