The biggest announcements of Blizzcon 2021 were all aboutDiablo.For the majority of the last decade, this beloved franchise was completely out of the spotlight, to say the least. Sure,Diablo 3got seasonal updates regularly and is still going strong even 8 years after its release, but other than that, Blizzard stayed quiet about one of their best franchises. Until now. Big things are coming withDiablo 2: Resurrected.
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Diablo 4, Diablo: Immortal, andDiablo 2: Resurrectedwere all announced during this year’s virtual Blizzcon, and whileDiablo 4is certainly going to be the largest game of them all, it isDiablo 2: Resurrectedthat seems to have gotten most of the love from the franchise’s fans. It should come as no surprise. With its varied character classes and endless replay value, this game is a cult classic, and people still play it to this day. However, it has been 20 years since it was released, andDiablo 2was more than due a remaster. But how isDiablo 2: Resurrectedactually going to differ from the original?
Updated on September 21st, 2021 by Hodey Johns:With the game releasing so soon, it felt like a good time to break down every single difference between Diablo 2 and Diablo 2: Resurrected that has been discovered, announced, and released. The news is a welcome appetizer of excitement for gamers that eagerly anticipate a game that fans often consider the greatest dungeon-crawler ever released. The original entries on this list covered most of the basics, but several specifics, including audio quality and graphic capabilities. An entry has also been added about framerate expectations and the developer. With upgrades across the board, the hype for this game is at a fever pitch, and reading through this list only heightens the anticipation for gamers welcoming the modernization of an icon.
15A New Developer
For gamers passionate about changing the toxic culture in the gaming industry, buying an Activision Blizzard product can seem like a monumental step backward. For whatever it is worth, the work has been outsourced to a new developer, Vicarious Visions, anddesign director Rob Gallerani agrees that the studio does not “get a pass” on the allegations.
Even if not for the sake of activism, fans might remember what happened with the disastrous WarCraft 3: Reforged debacle. They can be assured that the product will be better this time with Vicarious Visions, who developed the massively successful remake ofTony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2.
14Shared Items Stashes
The announcement of this change was met with unanimous approval from the fans. In the heyday ofDiablo 2’smultiplayer, the use of mule characters and useless saves and accounts created just to transfer items between one’s own characters was a common practice. Back in the day, the developers didn’t predict just how much players would need to switch itemsbetween their buildsand failed to include the shared stash mechanism inDiablo 2.
Fast-forward to 2021, and it seems like Blizzard devs have truly learned their lessons.Diablo 2: Resurrectedwill feature a shared stash system, where players will be able to freely exchange items between their characters, without any hassle whatsoever.
After the alpha test run ofResurrected,Blizzard has announced that they will expand on the shared stash sizes, adding two additional 10x10 tabs. All in all, players will have 300 slots of storage space at their disposal in the new shared stashes.
13Expanded Stash Sizes
When talking about stash improvements coming toDiablo 2: Resurrected,it is impossible not to mention the increased stash sizes. This was a major issue in the original game. Players were forced to go through countless hoops just to keep their items because the dedicated stashes (and inventory size) were simply too small to accommodate for the sheer amount of loot they could amass throughout their playthroughs.
TheDiablo 2modding community managed to fix that issue, introducing multiple modifications that increased the stash sizes to tolerable dimensions, but it is nice to see the developers taking note of this inconvenience and incorporating 10x10 stashes inResurrected.
12Automatic Pick Up
The auto pick-up mechanic of gold and other items of value (that do not take up too much inventory space) has been a tried and true practice in ARPGs for a while now. It was present inDiablo 3,and the majority of isometric hack-and-slash titles released in the last couple of years.
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WhenDiablo 2first came out in 2000, though, the automated picking up of loot and gold wasn’t on anyone’s mind. First of all, it was more difficult to implement back then. Secondly, it didn’t seem to affect the enjoyment of the game too much, so it was left untouched. It’s still good to know thatDiablo 2 Resurrectedwill keep up with the times and include at least some of the modern-day ARPG conveniences.
11Cutscenes Remade From Scratch
Game cutscenes from the 1995-2005 era had a specific atmosphere to them. Limited by the hardware capabilities of the times, and yet still thriving to look much better than the game itself, these clips often came out clunky and awkward-looking. Undoubtedly, they came to symbolize an entire time period of RTS and ARPG games, but in the end, deciding to revamp them to cater to the modern audience’s tastes was a good move on Blizzard’s side.
Hardcore fans of theDiablolore and plots of the main gamessurely can’t wait to see the stories they know so well reimagined in glorious 4K, with the implementation of all the newest animation tools.
10Improved Battlenet
Sure, the multiplayer inDiablo 2was very good. So good that it wouldn’t be an overstatement to claim that it was ahead of its time. The best proof of that is the fact that the Battle.net servers for the originalDiablo 2are still active, and there is a fair amount of players enjoying it to this day.
With that being said, the original Battle.net came with a fair share of issues, and these are only exacerbated by the age of these multiplayer servers. Battle.net 2.0 functionality coming toDiablo 2: Resurrectedmeans that the game’s most entertaining mode will run as smoothly as ever, letting a whole new generation of players have fun with it.
9Cross-Progression
One of the major changes coming toDiablo 2: Resurrectedis the fact that the game will also be available on consoles from day 1. That means hordes of console players getting introduced to what many players have hailed as the greatest ARPG of all time.
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The fact thatResurrectedis coming to consoles isn’t as important as the fact that the game will be getting cross-progression functionality across all platforms. Players will be able to carry their save over to any platform they choose to play the game on, makingDiablo 2more accessible than ever.
83D Graphics
This is probably the most noticeable change on this list. As expected from a full remaster,Diablo 2: Resurrectedwill introduce 3D graphics to the game. Compared to other games released in the year 2000,Diablo 2hasaged quite gracefully, and its visuals aren’t as bad as they could be.
It would be a lie to say that they aren’t at all outdated, though. The revamped graphics inResurrectedis certainly good news. Many players have always wanted to tryD2but were deterred by the old visuals. The refreshed look will undoubtedly help them enjoy the game for what it is – a great, timeless ARPG, regardless of the quality of its graphics.
7Improved Color Palette
During the alpha testing that concluded in July 2021, many players complained about the color schemes of items and Mana and Health animations not being clear enough and blending in with some of the game’s backgrounds.
Blizzard responded with a statement that they will “bring out the more vibrant colors, bring more attention to the focus points, and add clarity to the image”. Due to the 2D graphics of the originalDiablo 2,HUD visibility wasn’t a problem, but withResurrectedgetting the 3D treatment, it’s great that the developers are planning to address this particular bit of feedback.
6Option To Toggle Between New And Old Version
As mentioned earlier,Diablo 2: Resurrectedwill be getting refreshed graphics, with all of the 3D goodness and eye candy that comes with it. However, Blizzard has vowed toleave the original game intactand not repeat the mistakes made withWarcraft 3: Reforged,where they replaced the old game completely and removed the ability to buy it in any digital store.
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Diablo 2: Resurrectednot only won’t replace the original game, but it will also let fans seamlessly switch between the old, 2D version and the remastered one with one click of a button!
