Diablo 4 had an incredible launch with raving reviews and record player numbers. And I was part of that crowd too. I absolutely loved every second of it. But afterwards, I didn’t really get much time to stick with it throughout the seasonal updates. And suddenly, I’d see the community not being happy with the state of the game with most attributing it to lackluster progression systems, dull endgame, and problematic microtransactions. For series veterans, this may sound familiar as Diablo 3 was facing the same backlash right before its expansion, Reaper of Souls, came out and completely revamped everything and gained customer trust once again. Will Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred do the same remains to be the question even after this review. But for now, it’s more Diablo with a ton of new system changes.
I was given early access to the expansion through a separate build that we had to download. All our progression from that build will not carry over to the live version of the expansion and the base game. Nevertheless, I was able to play through the main story, try out the new difficulty scaling, resources, and skill progressions. Admittedly, Diablo 4 2.0 is a lot to take in and with an extremely limited preview time, I can’t confidently say that I have reached a full grasp on what I think about all of it.
However, I will say that for the most part, I enjoyed my time with Vessel of Hatred but I also couldn’t shake the feeling that for every new change they make, the more I lose the sense that I’m playing a Diablo game. There is a crowd that longs for the simplicity of slaying through a dungeon and earning random loot while there is also one that craves the numbers game. Min-maxing every possible stat, skill, and build combinations out there. Vessel of Hatred offers a path for both types of players, but the nature of the market and the current sandbox does favor the stats more than the immersion aspect. There is no definitive right answer for this, and it is important for Diablo 4 to cater to both playstyles. While Vessel of Hatred kicks off great, it has certain pacing issues leading up to a conclusion that ultimately leaves a lot to be desired on the narrative side. Gameplay wise, you’ll have no problem as the endgame is more fleshed out than ever before, with certain inclusions that fans have long been begging for.
Seek sanctuary
Vessel of Hatred starts off with a brutally fantastic opening cutscene, as one would expect from Blizzard. They waste no time in letting you know that yes, we’re doubling down on the dark tone we had in the base campaign. There was a moment here where I genuinely winced with what I saw and heard. Truly great horrific stuff.
Afterwards, the game kind of lets you go on your own path before you do the mainline mission. This is where some players are in danger of burning themselves out, similar to the Hinterlands of Dragon Age Inquisition. You’re thrown into town and are directed to travel all across the land for the first quest. Once you manage to stop yourself from trying to do every side mission and clearing every dungeon you see the story gets real interesting really quick.
Following the events of the base campaign, Neyrelle has taken it upon herself to travel with the Soulstone in order to try and extinguish Mephisto for good. However, given that she’s trying to transport evil incarnate itself, you can expect certain… complications. Think of it similar to when Harry, Ron, and Hermoine were carrying Salazar Slytherin’s locket. The longer they spent time with it, the more corrupted they got. The same goes for Neyrelle and the Soulstone.
In the beginning, you’re immediately given a strong motivation and a sense of urgency. Neyrelle is completely out of her league with the personal quest she decided to take upon herself and if you don’t get to her in time, there’s no telling what can happen to her and the rest of the world.
The corruption takes in the form of dark ooz that creeps its way onto the land, structures, animals, and people. It’s like the devil is a huge fan of Venom and decided to steal his flow. It makes for some really excellent and grotesque visuals. Everyone and everything caught in its grasps are wrecked beyond saving.
The expansion takes us to Nahantu, a brand-new region that’s filled with vast jungles. There is a lot of green here which acts as a great contrast when you see it slowly being corrupted by Mephisto. It reached a point where the destruction of the areas also became a strong motivating factor for me to keep fighting. I’ll never doubt a Diablo game when it comes to providing striking visuals in both models and environments and they’ve definitely stepped up their game here in Vessel of Hatred.
The story presentation, cutscene direction, and performances are all still top notch. Not much to complain about there. You don’t really go to a Diablo game for award-winning story telling but there were moments here where it felt like the writers were cooking. Aside from dealing with hell itself, you also see its implications on humans and how it drives them beyond reason. A whack religious militant leader is one of the antagonistic presences here which was very interesting in its introduction. I only wish they did more with it.
Without spoilers, all I’ll say is that I wasn’t particularly satisfied with how the Vessel of Hatred campaign ended. While I get that they shouldn’t tie up every lose end or else they’ll run out of material to further support the live nature of the game, I still felt like the whole build up was just for even more build up. Blizzard has confirmed that a second expansion was coming but I just wish that I felt like I experienced a complete story here before I get excited for what’s to come next.
Nahantu is also home to the Spiritborn, a new class coming with the expansion. They’re basically jungle warriors that summon 4 powerful spirit guardians to help them fight. Tarzan with magic? Yes.
The Spiritborn class is a lot of fun to play around with. As someone who loves crowd control, a lot of its abilities are inherently AOE attacks. You can summon upon the powers of an ancient jaguar, gorilla, eagle, and centipede, each having their own element and specialties. I particularly loved constantly smashing the ground and causing earthquakes with the gorilla while also doing debuffs and poisonous crowd control with the centipede. If you’re a fan of the Monk class, this might just be right up your alley. I do have to point out that they removed the campfire during the class select screen which is an absolute travesty, and I hope they bring it back in a future update.
Oh hell yea
Vessel of Hatred brings a wealth of new features, mechanics, and reworks that will keep both new and veteran players turning their heads. While there’s an overwhelming amount of content to unpack, I’ll focus on a few standout additions that really make this expansion worth your time.
One of the more interesting ones is the Mercenary System. Gone are the days of generic NPCs with minimal impact on your gameplay. Now, mercenaries are AI companions with their own backstories, unique skills, and a relationship system to deepen your connection. As you adventure with them, you build rapport, which unlocks valuable rewards and barter currencies. These can be exchanged for even more loot and items, adding a strategic layer to how you manage and develop your companions. You can even customize their active skills and combat behaviors, making this system a big step forward from what we’ve had before.
For players looking to grind for top-tier loot and items, the Kurast Undercity is a brand-new, multi-stage dungeon designed for leveling and late-game farming. This dungeon introduces a time-attack mechanic, where using special keys influences the type of loot you can earn. Along with that, there are in-dungeon challenges and fresh bosses to face. It’s the perfect endgame content for solo players, offering the kind of targeted farming and progression that Diablo fans crave. While it’s great on its own, I hope we’ll see even more updates and enemy types to keep this dungeon evolving over time.
At long last, Diablo 4 gets its first raid experience with the introduction of The Dark Citadel. This is a cooperative endgame raid that requires at least one additional player, with a maximum party size of four. There’s no brute-forcing your way through here, as the raid features both level checks and boss mechanics that require coordination and skill. Exclusive loot and cosmetics are in store for those who complete it. While I didn’t get to try it during my preview time, I’m eager to see how it plays out once the public build drops. For those worried about finding party members, the new Party Finder system that will be released alongside the expansion should be able to fix that.
Even if you don’t purchase Vessel of Hatred, you’ll still benefit from a host of major updates to the base game. The max character level has been bumped up to 60, which comes with a noticeable power spike—trust me, you’ll feel the difference. Each class also gets a new skill and five new passives, offering even more ways to tweak your build and optimize your playstyle. There are also item reworks, new legendaries, and uniques that make the loot-hunting loop even more exciting. With all these changes, Diablo 4 feels like it’s stepping into a 2.0 era, which alone is a solid reason to return to the game.
One of the features I’m most excited about is the new enemy intensity system, which ups the difficulty for those who choose to do torment levels. Monsters don’t just hit harder and have more health—they become more intelligent, aggressive, and tactical in their approach. Faster cooldowns and snappier AI ensure that every encounter feels more dynamic and challenging. For a game that thrives on giving players a power fantasy, adding this extra layer of danger makes the gameplay more satisfying. It’s a thrilling new way to keep players on their toes, even when they’re at their most powerful.
Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred Review Final Verdict – 8/10
Diablo 4 Vessel of Hatred offers a mix of exciting new content and significant updates to the base game that make Diablo 4 feel fresh again. Whether you’re going through the main story, farming loot in the Kurast Undercity, or gearing up for The Dark Citadel, there’s something here for everyone. It feels like Diablo 4 is setting a new standard for itself. I’m genuinely gagged with how much content and updates they’re able to jam into this one. There’s plenty to be excited about, and even more to look forward to in the future.
Is it enough to bring back player faith in Blizzard and Diablo 4? I can’t say for now. There’s a lot of cool stuff for sure but I don’t know if it’ll all be accepted by the community, or further drive them back. The balance between simplicity and complexity is always a fine line for a game like this. The best thing (or worst) thing about it is that it never stays the same. Only time will tell if this prevents Diablo 4 from eternal damnation.
This review was made using a game code for the PC provided by the publisher.